Borussia Dortmund and AC Milan shared the spoils in the second round of the Champions League group stage at the Signal Iduna Park on Wednesay, with neither side able to hit the back of the opposition net.
Wasted chances
Neither Dortmund nor Milan managed to win their opening match of the campaign, with Dortmund suffering defeat at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain in France, and Milan held to a goalless draw at home by Newcastle. Consequently, both teams would’ve done well to win this time, but no goals came, despite a number of chances at either end of the pitch.
The first half of the match saw Borussia with a slight edge in overall action. Donyell Malen looked lively for the hosts, while Milan’s Malick Thiaw had their first chance with a headed effort from a corner in the 15th minute. As the game went on, Dortmund gained momentum, with chances from Malen and Fullkrug, and Julian Brandt came close with a bicycle kick attempt. Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan also had a job keeping Bensebaini’s effort out from a tight angle.
In the second half, former Dortmund winger Christian Pulisic had a chance but shot straight at Kobel. The game slowed down as it approached the hour mark, with Tomori’s block on Fullkrug being the closest either team came to scoring.
Substitute Jamie Bynoe-Gittens added energy to Dortmund’s attack, but they couldn’t find the decisive goal. Milan had a chance through Chukuweze, but Kobel made a crucial save, securing a point for Dortmund.
The game by numbers
For what good it’ll do, Dortmund finished the contest as the statistically dominant side, despite some outlet suggesting Milan were “frustrated by Dortmund’s defending”.
The Black-and-Yellow had the ball at their feet for 58% of the time, attempted more passes (519-377) with better accuracy percentage (85-80), and took more shots towards Maignan’s goal (18, but just three on target) than the Rossoneri took at Gregor Kobel (14, two on target). These numbers obviously point to a lack of concentration from either forward line, and the fact that no goals were scored was hardly surprising.
Pioli unhappy
Speaking to Prime Video after the game, Milan head coach Stefano Pioli was obviously unhappy with the fact that his team have now failed to score in any of their last four Champions League matches, including both legs of last season’s semifinal against city rivals Inter Milan.
We lacked efficiency in front of goal, in the first half we weren’t perfect technically. It’s a pity, we wanted to win,” Pioli said.
“It was a European game, with a lot of attacking moments. We try to bring our ideas to the game; in Europe the pace of the game is high. They are a strong side but we did well.
“Great concentration will be required and we know that we cannot get a single thing wrong from now on, because qualification is very tough.
“It was clear from the start this was the toughest group in terms of quality, the level is very high throughout and the next game with PSG is going to be very important.”
Terzic doesn’t believe point was “undeserved”
Meanwhile, Terzic believes his team did very well against a difficult opponent, for his part, he pointed out that his team deserved the point they got. In all honesty, they deserved it probably more than the visitors.
“It was a decent game from us. In terms of commitment, willingness to run and activity, no reproach can be made of us. What we’re lacking is: turning the many possession recoveries into penetration in the final third,” Terzic told Dortmund’s official website.
“On that front, we made many wrong decisions. When the penalty area was not occupied, we put many crosses in; when it was occupied, we didn’t play the ball in front of goal.
“In three or three incidents, we did not find the team-mate who was in a better position. There were many phases where we were closer to taking the lead. In the end, it was not enough to say that it was an undeserved draw.
“We did not set out to be in last place in the group with one point after two rounds of matches. The group leaders are precisely three points away, there are still four games left to play and accordingly 12 points to be awarded.
“A great deal is possible in this group. I had the feeling today that we were slightly closer to the victory. In the game between Milan and Newcastle, Milan were closer to beating Newcastle.
“Today Newcastle won against PSG. We know that we need to start picking up three points. The next match is in Newcastle. We already knew before today’s results that it would not be an easy task.”
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