Inzaghi-powered AC Milan rout Torino

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Torino have not defeated Milan at the San Siro since March 24, 1985.

New Delhi: The Rossoneri reclaimed second place in the Serie A, following their comprehensive demolition of Torino at the San Siro Stadium.

First Half

Torino got the play underway at the San Siro, knowing that their club had not defeated Milan at this particular venue since March 24, 1985. Despite this though, the visitors started in an extremely positive manner, as they managed to immediately launch a promising attack through Abate on the right. Unfortunately for their sake though, nothing materialised from it, however it was a great start for the visitors.

The Granata continued their positive start to life under Giancarlo Camolese; however this all changed on nine minutes, when Rivalta brought down Pato on the left, allowing Beckham to spot Inzaghi with a superb free kick in the area. The veteran made no mistake with his head, however fortunately for Toro, the goal was correctly ruled out for offside.

From this point, the Rossoneri took full control of the play, as they started to dominate the midfield. Incredibly just four minutes later, 'Super Pippo' was at it again, however this time his header from a Beckham corner stood, giving his side a 1-0 lead on 13 minutes. It was the perfect start for Ancelotti’s men, as they now found themselves equal on points with their bitter rivals Juventus.

Milan continued to dominate proceedings against their struggling visitors, however to Toro’s credit, the home side failed to create any clear cut opportunities in the 15 minutes that followed the opening goal. Their best chance to double their advantage arguably came when Pato made his way past Franceschini to find Inzaghi in the middle, only for Sereni to make a fairly comfortable save from the close range effort.

Following this period, a glorious ball into the area by Pirlo almost led to Pato capitalising and scoring a brilliant goal with a first time volley from close range. It wasn’t to be however, as the Granata held on yet again. Just minutes later, they managed to get their first shot away on the evening, when Bianchi picked out Dzemaili, who from all of 30 yards attempted to beat Dida with a low effort.

On 37 minutes, some Beckham brilliance led to the Rossoneri doubling their advantage, through Inzaghi once again. Pato unselfishly played it to Beckham, allowing the Englishman to stroll to the edge of the area with the ball at his feet. Instead of blasting a shot away, he decided to chip the ball 10 yards into the area, where he successfully picked out Inzaghi, who found himself unmarked,allowing him to score for the second time in the match.

Ancelotti’s men continued to press forward as the half neared an end, and it was the former Arsenal man Flamini who went close to scoring the third just four minutes later. A corner by Beckham came off several players, and eventually it fell to the feet of Flamini, who powerfully struck a stinging volley from the edge of the area, only to see it sail inches over the bar.

That’s how the first half ended at the San Siro, as the giants of Italian football comfortably led by two goals at the break, against a Torino outfit that were simply outclassed and outplayed by the seven time European champions.

Second Half

Milan were set to get the play underway in the second half, however prior to doing so, both sides made a change each. Ancelotti somewhat surprisingly brought Pato off the field; however he was replaced by Ronaldinho, whilst Camolese made a straight switch in the middle, as Dzemaili made way for Samuel. The Rossoneri eventually got the play underway in the half, and it didn’t take them long to pick up from where they left off in the opening period.

It took the Rossoneri just 15 minutes to add to their tally, and sensationally Inzaghi grabbed his third of the night. An exceptional through ball by the substitute Ronaldinho was all it took for the veteran striker to be played through on goal, allowing him to easily slot the ball past Sereni to give his side a three goal cushion.

Ancelotti decided to end Inzaghi’s night after 65 minutes, as he brought on another veteran in Shevchenko to take his place. 'Super Pippo' received a rousing reception as he made his way from the field, and deservedly so too. Toro also made their third and final switch of the night, as Rubin was replaced by Ogbonna in defence.

Just two minutes later, Ambrosini was played through on goal and after making his way past Sereni, the goalkeeper decided to take him down in the area, gifting Milan a penalty kick. The decision was the correct one by the referee, and as expected, Kaka stepped up to score his first goal since early February, when he scored against Reggina.

To Torino’s credit, they managed to pull one back through Franceschini on 80 minutes after a poor Beckham clearance was made the most of. A Toro corner was poorly cleared by the Englishman, allowing Barone to spot Franceschini at the back post. The central defender easily tapped it in from close range, to make the score line a little more respectable.

The players just went through their paces in the final 10 minutes, and the 4-1 result certainly looked like being the eventual outcome. It wasn’t to be however, as a promising run by Kaka, and an even better through ball to Ambrosini, led to the Italian midfielder grabbing his side’s fifth of the night, to end the match on a high.

The result means that the Rossoneri leapfrog Juventus in second place, whilst Torino remain just one point clear of safety, with six matches of football remaining this season.

TEAMS

Milan (4-3-1-2): Dida; Flamini, Senderos, Maldini (Darmian, 72’), Zambrotta; Beckham, Pirlo, Ambrosini; Kaka; Pato (Ronaldinho, 46’), Inzaghi (Shevchenko, 65’)

Torino (4-4-1-1): Sereni; Rivalta (Dellafiore, 40’), Natali, Franceschini, Rubin (Ogbonna, 65’); Abate, Dzemaili (Samuel, 46’), Barone, Diana; Rosina, Bianchi

GOALS

13’ Inzaghi (Milan)

37’ Inzaghi (Milan)

60’ Inzaghi (Milan)

68’ Kaka pen. (Milan)

80’ Franceschini (Torino)

90’ Ambrosini (Milan)