Milan Player Ratings vs Cagliari: French & Portuguese Superstars Flop, USMNT Aces Top | OneFootball

Sergio Conceicao failed to win on his touchline debut in Serie A as relegation-threatened Cagliari held his wasteful Milan side to a 1-1 draw at Stadio San Siro. As a result, the hosts missed a glorious opportunity to reduce the gap on fourth-placed Lazio.

Buoyed by their remarkable Supercoppa Italiana triumph last week, Milan entered their first Serie A match of 2025 as favorites. Despite only winning once in seven league games toward the end of the calendar year, the new energy Conceicao has established had promised great things.

Rafael Leao and Christian Pulisic excelled in Riyadh, yet only the latter lived up to expectations today. However, it wasn’t enough for Milan to find a breakthrough in the first half, even though they had 66% possession and generated eight shots on goal, including three on target. Cagliari’s defense headed into the break unscathed.

Yet, it took Milan a mere six minutes into the second half to take a well-deserved lead. The woodwork helped Cagliari goalkeeper Elia Caprile thwart Christian Pulisic’s low effort. Alvaro Morata was too quick in the follow-up to tap home from point blank.

Milan didn’t settle for a narrow advantage but couldn’t find the second to put the game to bed. It would backfire on the Rossoneri. Youssouf Fofana switched off for a slip second, and it was enough for Cagliari to draw level through Nadir Zortea, though Mike Maignan’s atypically poor reaction facilitated the matter.

Conceicao’s charges continued to dominate the game after conceding the equalizer but to no avail. Caprile enjoyed a dream debut for Cagliari, fending off Milan to reignite the club’s fears about securing a coveted Champions League qualification.

Without further ado, let’s look at our player ratings.

Milan (4-2-3-1)

Mike Maignan – 6

The Frenchman flew through the air to deny Mattia Felici’s attempt late in the first half. However, there was a feeling he could’ve done better to stop the goal.

Theo Hernandez – 7

His lofted pass for Pulisic preceded the opening goal as the star left-back delivered another reassuring performance under Conceicao. Omnipresent on the left flank!

Malick Thiaw – 6.5

Despite getting away with several sloppy interventions, the German center-back didn’t inspire confidence, though he fared reasonably well in possession.

Fikayo Tomori – 7

Back to the starting line-up in Serie A for the first time since October, the ex-Chelsea ace was impressive against Roberto Piccoli, even though he didn’t have much to do inside Milan’s penalty area.

Davide Calabria – 6

His defensive-minded approach wasn’t suited for tonight’s game, considering Milan had the initiative all 90 minutes. Useless in the final third!

Youssouf Fofana – 4.5

What was he thinking losing the ball like that and then letting the opposition player jog past him? His mistake leading to Cagliari’s equalizer perhaps best summarized his frustrating evening.

Yunus Musah – 6

His work ethic and commitment were commendable, but his attempted through balls often lacked sharpness and precision.

Rafael Leao – 5

Milan needed an X-Factor to break down Cagliari’s low block. Unfortunately, the Portuguese superstar failed to live up to the billing, wasting way too many balls.

Tijjani Reijnders – 5.5

Occasional flashes of brilliance couldn’t mask the Dutchman’s lackadaisical attitude. He let his teammates down in several promising situations on either side of halftime.

Christian Pulisic – 7

Everything was swirling around the USMNT forward. He was unlucky not to score, as the woodwork denied him twice in the second half.

Alvaro Morata – 7

Had it not been for the goal, it would’ve been another sub-standard night for the Spaniard.

Substitutes

Tammy Abraham – 5