Tottenham unable to break down AC Milan as Italians progress to quarter-finals

Tottenham 0 AC Milan 0 (Milan win 1-0 on aggregate)

There were boos from the Tottenham support at half-time and sighs when Cristian Romero got himself sent off for a second wild lunge. There were more jeers when Antonio Conte sacrificed Dejan Kulusevki and his fleeting dalliance with a 4-2-4 system. But, overall, there was just frustration.

Spurs were always in this last 16, second-leg tie and yet, at the same time, never really in it at all, the gulf between their telegraphed patterns and Milan’s composure all too pronounced. Conte, who made his eagerly awaited return to the touchline after his health problems, knew that one moment could tip the balance. And yet it never came.

When Pierre-Emile Højbjerg ran from right to left, kept on going and banged a shot towards the top corner, it forced the Milan goalkeeper, Mike Maignan to tip over. It was the 65th minute and it was indisputably the first time that the crowd were roused. It was pretty much the last, too, if you do not count the dismay that followed Romero’s decision to hurl himself into Théo Hernandez on the right flank.

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Harry Kane almost pinched something in stoppage-time with a header – of course he did – before Rafael Leão went up to the other end to strike the post. But for Spurs, regrets were in short supply. They were well beaten, their dreams in tatters.

The home crowd wanted a fast start, much like the one that Milan had made in the first leg when Brahim Diaz scored after seven minutes. But this Conte team is not really set up to blow the bloody doors off – especially against opponents that seek control and to maintain their shape.

It was Milan who eased into the tie, Spurs looking rigid and edgy as evidenced by the early yellow card for Cristian Romero, who flew into a reckless tackle on Rafael Leão.

He knew that meant him missing the first leg of the quarter-final should Spurs progress and the same fate befell Clement Lenglet midway through the first period; an aerial challenge on Olivier Giroud, a stray arm, another costly booking. This one was harsh.

Stefano Pioli has recently switched to a back three and there was a good deal of flexibility about the Milan system; Díaz roaming from the right to the No 10 role, Leão going where the mood took him. The wing backs, Junior Messias and Theo Hernández, pushed high and it was the former who should have opened the scoring.

Milan worked a short free-kick routine after the Romero yellow card with Sandro Tonali playing the killer pass for Messias.

Ben Davies had gambled on the interception and lost. Messias was in on the right-hand side only to drag wastefully past the far post.

It was easy to fixate on Conte, his return a prominent subplot. He had last been seen on the touchline at San Siro three weeks ago when he did not look great and was promptly ordered to rest. He had been counting down to this, the biggest game of Spurs’ season, the stadium packed, the colours impossibly vivid.

The first half was a tough watch for him and the Spurs support, who struggled to stifle their frustration – whether it was Ivan Perisic being robbed as he tried to shepherd the ball out, Davies miscontrolling or Son Heung-min overhitting a cross. Still, it was remarkable to hear the smattering of boos upon the half-time whistle. They were even louder at the final whistle.

Milan grew in comfort on the ball leading up to the interval, Díaz and Tonali catching the eye, partly because Spurs did not bring any sort of press. Conte’s team wanted to counter but apart from one early surge by Harry Kane, which led to an Emerson Royal shot that was blocked, they got nothing going. It was too static and predictable.

There had been drama before kick-off, the north London roads jammed, leaving the team buses to inch along. Would they make it on time? It felt touch and go. Spurs would finally punch in at 7pm, Milan five minutes later. The kick-off was set back by 10 minutes.

The atmosphere failed to crackle up to and including the interval when the former Spurs captain, Steve Perryman, took a long trudge down memory lane as the on-field guest. Conte’s team had to find something in the second half, anything, because at 0-0, they only needed one moment. Equally, the crowd were never going to need much to rally behind. Just something, anything.

It has not been a good season for Milan, their title defence long since in tatters; fifth place in Serie A. Chelsea outplayed them home and away in the group phase of this competition.

And yet they looked good here, Díaz seemingly playing his own game at times. He swapped passes with Messias on 52 minutes, got a break and forced Fraser Forster into a smart block.

Conte’s introduction of Pedro Porro injected energy and there was the sense, perhaps just a hope, that Spurs were gearing up for a grandstand finish when Højbjerg extended Maignan. Belatedly, there was life, even if Milan continued to threaten on the break. Then came Romero’s recklessness. It was never Tottenham’s night. – Guardian