Milan's Champions League ambitions collapsed in dramatic fashion at San Siro, as a 2-1 defeat to an already-safe Cagliari side ended their hopes of a top-four finish. The result was all the more galling because a single point would have sufficed, with Torino and Juventus playing out a 2-2 draw in the Derby della Mole. Instead, Massimiliano Allegri's men produced one of their most disjointed performances of the season, leaving the pitch to a chorus of jeers and angry chants aimed at owner Gerry Cardinale.
The early signs had appeared so promising. Barely a minute had elapsed when Alexis Saelemaekers fired Milan in front, finishing clinically after a flicked header from Santiago Gimenez. The Belgian winger was the fulcrum of a lively opening spell, and for a quarter of an hour the hosts looked capable of steamrolling their Sardinian visitors. But that slickness quickly evaporated. Cagliari, under the astute guidance of coach Fabio Pisacane, grew into the game and exposed the same defensive fragility that has plagued Milan throughout the campaign.
The equaliser was a microcosm of Milan's ills. A set-piece delivery found Yerry Mina, who outjumped Fikayo Tomori to nod the ball into the path of Gennaro Borrelli. The striker reacted quickest, stabbing home from close range while Matteo Gabbia stood rooted, his positioning a mess. It was defending Sunday League sides would be ashamed of, and it turned the tide irrevocably. From that moment, belief drained from the Rossoneri and flooded into the away team.
Cagliari's winner arrived after the break, and again it was a tale of individual error and tactical confusion. Youssouf Fofana, who laboured all evening, lost his man Rodrigo Becão at a corner, allowing the defender to thump a header past a helpless Mike Maignan. Fofana's display was emblematic of a team that, when the pressure ratchets up, habitually crumbles. The Frenchman earned a 4.5 rating, and even the introduction of Luka Modrić could not restore order. La Joya, as he is known, tried to seize the initiative but found too few willing accomplices.
The attacking unit fared even worse. Christopher Nkunku, handed a start, faded after a bright opening and missed a golden chance at 1-0, dragging wide when clean through. His 4.5 rating was generous given how anonymous he became. Niclas Füllkrug, sent on as a substitute, somehow contrived to be even more ineffective—a 4 rating, with every touch seemingly finding a red and blue shirt. Rafael Leão and Christian Pulišić likewise flickered only sporadically, their cameos summed up as 'frizzante ma senza pungere'—fizzy but never stinging.
While Milan's marquee names melted, Cagliari's lesser lights shone. Gianluca Gaetano delivered a midfield 'recital' of technique and vision, his shot forcing a spectacular save from Maignan and his distribution cutting open the Rossoneri repeatedly. Sebastiano Esposito was described as a 'lighthouse' for the visitors, orchestrating play with a maturity beyond his years and earning a 7 rating. Borrelli, with his poacher's instinct, also netted a 7, and even came close to a second assist when he set up a glaring chance for Benjamin Mendy, who inexplicably blazed over with only the goalkeeper to beat.
That miss could have made it 3-1, but it hardly mattered. Milan's night was already in tatters. Allegri's own rating of 4 reflected not just the result but the manner of the failure. He had one job—secure a point—and his team produced a performance so listless that the coach himself might have wondered how his methods had unravelled so completely. Pisacane, conversely, walked off with a 7, his game plan executed to perfection.
The consequences are stark. Milan will play in the Europa League next season, a sobering prospect for a club of their stature. Instead of joining Inter and Napoli in Europe's elite competition, they will watch as Roma and Como take the remaining Champions League berths. The financial hit and blow to prestige will intensify the scrutiny on the ownership group, already under fire from a fanbase that filled San Siro with anti-Cardinale songs long before the final whistle.
In the stands, the mood was mutinous. Whistles rained down from the Curva Sud, and banners demanded change. The team's post-match trudge was accompanied by deafening disapproval, a sound that will echo into the summer. Based on reporting from Tuttosport.
