TOPS
Junior Messias: and the light was
Difficult to imagine at the start of the match that the sunshine of the game would come from this player little known to the general public and little experienced in European games.
However, it is he who has totally revived the suspense in this group B by placing this perfect diving header at the far post after an excellent cross from Frank Kessié.
Beyond his saving goal, he was able to show himself to his advantage during the half hour granted to him by Stefano Pioli.
It is he who makes this center back for the shot from Bakayoko saved on his line before serving Ibrahimovic perfectly, finally offside, on the right of the area.
A match synonymous with revelation in broad daylight for Junior Messias.
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Pierre Kalulu: the nice surprise
Very interesting match of the young Pierre Kalulu on his right lane.
The Frenchman has evolved without complex on the lawn of Wanda Metropolitano.
Very active on his side, he multiplied the climbs especially in the first period to help his partners to perforate the block of Madrid.
The former Lyonnais did not really suffer from the speed of Yannick Carrasco, his direct opponent and was clean defensively since he did not commit the slightest fault.
His replacement in the 65th minute may have been surprising given his production on the meadow.
Brahim Diaz, the wisp
Yes, the young Spaniard was not always inspired in his choices, especially at the end of the first period.
But he was a permanent poison for the Madrid defense.
His liveliness and ability to consistently play forward gave Diego Simeone's rearguard some headaches.
His magnificent directional control then his cross to Giroud in the 18th minute was one of the few clearings in a sad first act.
Thanks to his small support and his percussion capacity he suffered no less than 6 faults this Wednesday.
If he will have to win consistently over the duration of a match, he certainly remains a valuable asset against low blocks as was the case on Wednesday.
FLOPS
Olivier Giroud was grumpy
Match quickly forgotten for the French striker. In this part, Olivier Giroud made many more mistakes than he created chances. He came close to exclusion at the start of the second period after a gross foul when he had already received a yellow card in the first period. The former Chelsea and Arsenal player appeared very nervous on Wednesday, like his many spat with Uruguayan defender José Gimenez. And to top it off, he was forced to give up his place in the 66th minute, due to a back injury. Giroud will certainly only remember his team's victory on Wednesday
Luis Suarez, harmless
The gunslinger didn't hit the nail on the head this Wednesday night. Aligned alongside Griezmann, the Uruguayan striker was no threat to the Milan hinge Kjaer-Romagnoli. Just like Giroud, he often made a mistake and showed himself out of time during the rare offensives of his team. In the 50th minute, he had a great opportunity to open the scoring on an excellent cross from Griezmann in the 5.50m. The former Liverpool and Barça player does not frame his recovery and squanders his only clear opportunity of the match. In his defense, it is difficult to create a host of situations in a team so cautious offensively.
Diego Simeone, why so little play?
Because yes this Atlético can be very frustrating.
This match was the quintessence of the game plan wanted by Diego Simeone and which has shown its effectiveness in the past.
This Wednesday, difficult to do more inefficient.
The Colchoneros have constantly refused the game and the changes made by the Argentine technician were not really likely to energize the offensive sector.
In the 77th minute, when the score was still a goalless draw, he chose to replace attacking midfielder Rodrigo de Paul with defender Sime Vrsaljko.
5 minutes later, Antoine Griezmann comes out in favor of a defensive midfielder, in this case Geoffrey Kondogbia.
A damaging but above all unnecessary reluctance.
