AC Milan’s 2-0 win over Lecce on Sunday night offered more than a comfortable result at San Siro. The second goal, finished by Adrien Rabiot, came at the end of a 15-pass move in which Lecce never regained possession, a sequence that gave a clear glimpse of the football Ruben Amorim is attempting to establish.
Key takeaways
- Rabiot made it 2-0 after Milan completed 15 consecutive passes without a Lecce touch.
- The move began deep in Milan territory and included Luka Modric, Samuel Chukwueze, Mario Gila, Alexis Saelemaekers, Christian Pulisic and Sergio Ramos.
- Milan had recorded 80 per cent possession after half an hour against Lecce.
- Pulisic and Rabiot combined twice in the decisive final phase before Rabiot scored with his left foot at the near post.
- The goal reflected Amorim’s priorities: control, patience, well-timed vertical play and midfield runners joining attacks.
A goal built from patience
The move started near the touchline in Milan’s own half, where Gila kept the ball in play. He linked with Modric and Chukwueze in a small passing triangle, with the immediate task simply to protect possession while the goal remained a long way off.
Modric then provided the first significant change of direction, finding Saelemaekers around midfield and moving the play from the right towards the left. Lecce had time to retreat into their defensive shape, and Milan did not force the issue. Rabiot calmly recycled possession back to the right, where Gila had advanced.
That was the point at which the move accelerated. Gila played forward into Pulisic, whose first-time touch released Rabiot. The French midfielder exchanged passes with Sergio Ramos, received the return in front of goal and placed a left-footed finish inside the near post.
There was a touch of improvisation in the closing combinations, including a sole-of-the-foot pass from Pulisic, but the applause inside San Siro was for the whole construction: a side able to keep the ball, wait for the defence to settle, and then find the opening when it appeared.
Amorim’s early Milan idea
One attractive passage should not be treated as proof that Milan’s identity has already been transformed. Last season, Massimiliano Allegri’s side also produced a 16-pass counter-attacking goal finished by Pulisic, yet sustained possession football did not define the wider campaign.
There is, however, reason to view the Lecce display differently under Amorim. Milan’s early 80 per cent share of the ball and the nature of Rabiot’s goal pointed towards the Portuguese coach’s intended principles: retaining the ball without becoming passive, attacking vertically at the right moment, and asking midfielders to arrive in advanced areas.
The sequence also depended on players moving across the pitch in response to Lecce’s defensive positioning rather than remaining fixed in one lane. If Milan’s squad comes to trust that this approach is not merely possible but productive, then Amorim’s work at the club will have taken an important step forward.
