Ferencvárosi Stun AC Milan 2-0 at San Siro: Lenny Joseph Brace Exposes Dire Milan Form
SportSignals Match Desk · Football analysis desk ·
Right. Let me tell you exactly what I saw on Thursday evening at San Siro. I saw an AC Milan side with 70 percent of the ball, 15 shots, and zero goals. I saw a Ferencvárosi team that came to compete, kept it simple, and punished Milan for every mistake. The scoreline was 2-0 to Ferencvárosi. It could have been more. End of.
The Basics Were Not There
Milan had the ball constantly. Seventy percent possession. Six hundred and seventy-five passes attempted. And they had one big chance created from all of that. One. Ferencvárosi, working with thirty percent of the ball and two hundred and eighty-nine passes, created six big chances. That is not a tactical problem. That is a desire problem. That is a standards problem. You can pass the ball around your own half all night long. If you cannot manufacture a clear opening, the possession means nothing.
The thing is, Ferencvárosi came to San Siro and worked harder in every duel that mattered. They won forty-seven duels to Milan's forty-four. They made twenty tackles to Milan's twelve. They had thirteen interceptions. They were at it. They were willing. Milan's players looked like they were waiting for something to happen rather than going out and making it happen. That is unacceptable at this level.
Lenny Joseph: Doing the Simple Things Right
Lenny Joseph scored both goals, in the fifty-second and sixty-sixth minutes, both with his right foot and both assisted by Kristoffer Zachariassen. Two goals, two assists between them, and the job was done. Joseph took his chances cleanly. He did not need twelve shots. He did not need seventy percent of the ball. He needed two opportunities and he finished them. That is what a striker with attitude and application looks like. Milan's forwards had six big chances missed across the team. Six. That tells you everything.
Listen, I am not interested in excuses about Milan's injury list. Yes, they had significant absentees. Yes, they had players suspended. But you still have to put eleven men on the pitch who are willing to compete. The players who were available did not earn their wages on Thursday night.
Milan's Defensive Collapse
Milan's goalkeeper made six saves. Six. Without him, the scoreline is embarrassing rather than merely bad. Ferencvárosi put eight shots on target. They had twelve shots inside the box. Milan's backline gave Ferencvárosi far too much room to operate in dangerous areas, and when Joseph ran in behind, there was nobody home.
Alphadjo Cissè picked up a yellow card in the thirty-second minute for a foul and was replaced at half-time. That substitution was forced, not chosen. Milan then made three changes at the break altogether, bringing on Christian Pulisic, Mario Gila, and Diego Moreira. Koni De Winter added a yellow card of his own in the fifty-first minute, right after the break. So Milan were disorganised, carded, and already chasing the game before the hour mark. That is not bad luck. That is poor management of a match from the very first whistle.
Luka Modrić came on in the sixty-third minute, replacing Ardon Jashari. Milan were searching for something. They never found it. Their two shots on target all match tells you all you need to know about how that worked out.
Ferencvárosi's Discipline and Composure
Credit where it is due. Ferencvárosi came to a hostile environment, went about their work with discipline, and saw the job through. They had a man sent off in the seventy-seventh minute. Bamidele Yusuf, on as a substitute from the sixty-seventh minute, received a red card for violent conduct, confirmed by VAR. So they finished the match with ten men. And still Milan could not score. That should haunt the Milan dressing room. It should haunt the manager. You are playing against ten men at home and you cannot pull one back. That is not acceptable.
Ferencvárosi in the UEFA Europa League had won all five of their completed matches coming into this fixture, scoring fourteen goals and conceding only three across that sample. That is not a fluke. That is a team that knows what it is doing and brings the right attitude every single week. Milan, in their three completed Europa League matches before this, had won once, lost twice, conceding five goals. The form lines were there for anyone who wanted to see them.
What This Means for Milan
Milan now have two losses from three completed Europa League matches in this rolling sample, and they have failed to score in two of those three. The injury situation is real. Eight players unavailable on the injury sheet, with several not expected back until February. But a squad of this size and resource should not be producing performances like this. The attitude in the first half was wrong. The execution of the basics was wrong. The willingness to compete for second balls, to press with intent, to create chances from open play, all of it was wrong.
Sophie, if she were here, would probably point to the structure and how Milan could not compress space against a low block. She's not wrong. But I do not need a tactical breakdown to know that eight shots off target and one big chance created is a failure of desire as much as anything else. When you have the ball that much and produce that little, you have to look your players in the eye and ask them what they were doing out there.
Ferencvárosi deserved every bit of this. They were better in the moments that mattered. They competed. They executed. They did the basics. Milan did not. That is the story of this match. And no amount of possession statistics changes it.
