WHAT HAPPENED?
U.S. men’s national team stars Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah started for Milan, who jumped out to an early lead behind Theo Hernandez and Tammy Abraham. That duo combined for both goals, with the former assisting the latter in the 17th and 43rd minutes to give Milan the lead heading into the halftime break.
Roma pulled one back early in the second half through Artem Dovbyk, but Milan pushed back with another goal of their own thanks to two newcomers. Mexico’s Santi Gimenez provided the assist and fellow January signing Joao Felix, on loan from Chelsea, provided the goal, giving Milan a 3-1 lead.
That scoreline would hold, despite a Roma goal called back, as AC Milan booked their spot in the tournament’s semifinal round.
THE BIGGER PICTURE
It was a big debut for GImenez, who adds a bit more CONCACAF flavor to one of the world’s biggest clubs. The Mexican star emerged as a top goalscorer at Feyenoord, with 65 goals in 105 appearances for the club. Those goals earned him a move to Milan in a deal worth around $35 million.
He started on the bench, though, as the two Americans were named to the starting XI. Pulisic went 59 minutes and could have had a goal if Abraham had opted to square it instead of taking it for himself on his second finish. Pulisic did have one shot and one chance created while completing all but two of his passes. Musah, meanwhile, started in central midfield and put in a very strong shift. The American had some good moments defensively while helping Milan drive the game forward, completing two dribbles while creating a chance and firing a shot on goal.
WHAT NEXT FOR MILAN?
With the win, Milan will face either Inter or Lazio on April 2 in the first leg of their semifinal clash. Before that, though, the club will look to climb out of its Serie A hole starting this weekend against Empoli. After that, they’ll coincidentally head to the Netherlands to face Gimenez’s former club Feyenoord in the Champions League on Feb. 12.