There was no danger of a comeback at Sassuolo, no chance of history repeating. This is a different team in a different timeNobody could mistrust a 3-0 lead more than the Milan supporters who saw their team throw that scoreline away in the 2005 Champions League final. The scars of defeat to Liverpool never fully healed, not even after their team took revenge two years later. Fans self-diagnosed with “Istanbul Syndrome” to explain the foreboding they felt whenever their team found itself in a winning position thereafter.Fresh outbreaks were reported in the days leading up to Milan’s season-ending game away to Sassuolo. The Rossoneri needed just a point against mid-table opponents to seal their first Serie A title for 11...
Mbappé staying in Paris has angered Real Madrid and La Liga but PSG argue the eye-watering numbers add up in their favourSo whose side are you on in the fallout following Kylian Mbappé’s decision to stay with Paris Saint-Germain? Watching the extraordinary outrage in Spain, with the press accusing the Frenchman of lacking class and La Liga branding the deal as “scandalous”, has raised eyebrows. But not as many as PSG being able to stump up a €200m-plus package for the world’s best player – despite making a €224m loss last year.There are no good guys here, only a gnawing unease that the laws of economic gravity are being defied to the further detriment of the game we love. As...
Europa League final evoked showpieces of old and marked the moment Frankfurt’s goalkeeper became a heroGlory comes in many forms and it came for Kevin Trapp in the form of an astonishing save in the final minute of extra time. When Kemar Roofe’s cross was deflected into the path of Ryan Kent six yards out, a late winner seemed certain. But Trapp scuttled across his goal, spread himself and the ball cannoned away off his outstretched right leg, a block rooted in hour upon hour on the training ground, honing reflexes and response times, getting the angles right.He had four years at Paris Saint-Germain, but that save, even more than keeping out Aaron Ramsey’s penalty in the shootout, is what...
Title race will go down to wire but if Milan win it the ‘coast to coast’ goal against Atalanta will be season’s standout momentRafael Leão held his head in his hands, but this was no gesture of despair. The Portuguese forward had just watched his Milan teammate, Theo Hernández, score the goal that would put them within a point of claiming the Scudetto, sealing a 2-0 win over Atalanta. He should have been celebrating but needed to stop for a moment and try to fathom what he had just seen.Theo had set off from the left corner of Milan’s penalty area moments before. When the ball ran to him from a sliding challenge by Rade Krunic on Jérémie Boga, he...
After a five-year stay sprinkled with fond memories, Levante’s relegation was confirmed via a 6-0 defeat at Real MadridAdrián Cordero Vega ended it a second too early and not a moment too soon. The clock said 89.59 when the referee blew but it had been over almost from the start, and not just last night. Levante were a goal down after 12:42 at the Bernabéu; they were down-down as well, no longer able to resist the inevitable, the fate they had fought. “We’ve been been given up for dead many times but keep rising again,” said Alessio Lisci, their third coach this season and the only one to win a game, but this was a resurrection too far. Now they...