upset Barcelona 2-0 in the opening leg of their Champions League round
of 16 clash at San Siro on Wednesday.
Kevin-Prince Boateng opened the scoring during the second half in
controversial circumstances after an apparent handball by Cristian
Zapata in the buildup, and Sulley Al Muntari finished off a counter
attack for the second goal with nine minutes to go.
Much like last season's 0-0 quarter-final first leg meeting between
the two sides, Barca monopolized possession, but were unable to
convert their dominance into goals in the face of a defensive clinic
from the Rossoneri, who now look like convincing favourites to advance
to the last eight.
In the absence of the cup-tied Mario Balotelli, Massimiliano Allegri
called on Giampaolo Pazzini to partner Stephan El Shaarawy up front,
while Xavi passed a late fitness test to start in midfield for the
visitors. Early on, Phillipe Mexes was forced to head away a Jordi
Alba cross dangerously close to the far post, but the first real
opening came when Pazzini's flick put El Shaarawy in the clear, but a
poor first touch allowed Carles Puyol to remove the danger. As
expected, Milan were put under significant pressure by the tiki-taka
football of Barcelona, but, to their credit, were able to stifle the
Blaugrana in great numbers, and force them to bide their time with
patient passes outside the area. Mexes was shown a 25th minute yellow
card for tripping up Lionel Messi, but the first half passed with
little incident as Barca could do little with all their possession,
while Milan's rare forays forward were snuffed out almost as quickly
as they began. The second half progressed in much the same vein as the
first with Barca on top, but, just before the hour mark, Milan would
take the lead out of nowhere in hotly contested circumstances. Kevin
Constant laid off a free-kick to Riccardo Montolivo, whose shot
appeared to cannon off the hand of Zapata. There was no call from the
referee, however, and Barca were stunned as Boateng steadied himself
to finish from the edge of the box. Animated protests from the
visitors only led to a booking for Gerard Pique, and Barca's
frustration continued in front of goal, with Andres Iniesta's fizzing
drive from distance about the best they could muster in front of goal.
And with 81 minutes on the clock, Milan's optimism turned to flat out
jubilation, when a sweeping move on the break saw M'Baye Niang release
El Shaarawy into the area, who in turn teed up the streaming Muntari
for a precise finish from inside the box. The San Siro was rocking
with pride and disbelief, and their elation crested as Barca simply
could not find a way back into the match in the time that remained,
setting up an enticing second-leg at Camp Nou in three weeks, with the
Catalans needing to score at least twice.
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