Capello names three stars of Milan 1-0 Lazio: ‘Modric made more mistakes than usual’ | OneFootball

Fabio Capello says that Rafael Leao and Mike Maignan were the stars of the show for Milan during their 1-0 victory over Lazio on Saturday, and feels that Davide Bartesaghi is earning ‘more and more trust’ from Massimiliano Allegri, but also believes that Luka Modric put in a rare poor performance against the Biancocelesti in San Siro.

The Rossoneri claimed the overnight lead of the Serie A table thanks to their 1-0 win over Lazio in San Siro on Saturday evening: Rafael Leao scoring his fifth of the season to draw level with Christian Pulisic, Hakan Calhanoglu, Nico Paz and Riccardo Orsolini as the division’s leading goalscorer.

Milan will now be hoping for a favour from Napoli, who will play away against Roma in Serie A on Sunday evening. Roma require a victory over the Partenopei to leapfrog Milan back to the top of the table.

Capello on Milan 1-0 Lazio: ‘Leao starting to become even more wicked in front of goal’

Fabio Capello (Photo by Jurij Kodrun/Getty Images)

Though they got the result in the end, Capello believes that Milan struggled slightly in the first half against Lazio, and says that this was largely down to a rare sub-par performance from former Ballon d’Or winner, Modric.

“Lazio had control for 20 to 25 minutes of the first half, and without the heroics from Maignan, the evening could have gone down a different route for Milan. I think his save on Gila was the start of the game for Milan,” Capello wrote in his La Gazzetta dello Sport column.

“I thought Sarri’s team could have created problems for the Rossoneri, with their narrow set-up and their ability to close the space out of possession. For once, there was also a ‘human’ performance from that phenomenon called Luka Modric: The Croatian made more mistakes than usual, and it is no coincidence that his teammates struggled to recover the ball.”

MILAN, ITALY – NOVEMBER 29: Luka Modric of AC Milan runs with the ball during the Serie A match between AC Milan and SS Lazio at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on November 29, 2025 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Rosi – SS Lazio/Getty Images)

Despite Modric’s off-evening, there were still inspiring performances from Maignan and Leao.

“Modric had a quiet evening for the first time, but it was Maignan and Leao who took care of it, leading them to a victory which has put them top of the table overnight,” Capello continued.

“The Frenchman and Portuguese were heroes of the 2022 Scudetto and are returning as protagonists in this season, in which Milan are trying to win that second star.

“Maignan is a guarantee: There’s always at least a few key saves in every game he plays, saves that are worth as much as the strikers’ goals in certain situations.

“Rafa is becoming increasingly mature and important: Three shots on goal yesterday, a good header and a very nice goal, scored after a lovely passage of one-touch play. Leao isn’t a centre-forward, but he’s playing an atypical role as the first striker and is starting to become even more wicked in front of goal.

MILAN, ITALY – NOVEMBER 29: Rafael Leao of AC Milan celebrates scoring his team’s first goal during the Serie A match between AC Milan and SS Lazio at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on November 29, 2025 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

“As of yesterday, he’s deservedly one of the top scorers in Serie A. It’s not a bad step forwards, especially considering that Allegri is starting to change his attitude away from goal as well. Rafa sacrifices himself, he helps his teammates, he has become more responsible but also happier.”

Capello believes that Bartesaghi is also becoming an increasingly important role player for the Rossoneri under Allegri.

“Another who has earned Allegri’s trust thanks to the consistency of his performances is Bartesaghi, who’s now a starter on the left. Okay, he’s not Theo, but he’s a homemade talent and is becoming more and more valuable. He’s got physicality, bravery and communicates well with his teammates.”

With this set of players, and with a never-say-die attitude, Capello believes that Milan are well within their rights to start dreaming about the Scudetto.

“These are encouraging signs for Rossoneri fans to look to the future with optimism,” he wrote. “There’s no lack of quality, individuals are stepping up and Milan continue to beat big names in the league, even if they have to win dirty or less spectacularly than usual, like yesterday’s game against Lazio.”