On 23rd January, 2022...the mood at the San Siro was quite contrasting. Milan hosted Juventus with only one goal in mind- keeping the Scudetto dream alive. Juventus on the other hand looked at this fixture as an opportunity to jump up the table into the top 4. The match promised to be a thriller.
The home side started on the front foot and took the game to the visitors. But the Old Lady of Turin were determined to stand firm amid an onslaught by Milanese young guns. As Rafael Leão stung the palms of Bianconeri goalkeeper Wojceich Szczesny early on, it set the tune which effectively continued for 90 minutes.
Milan had 14 attempts out of which 4 were on target. Juventus kept the Milan attack at bay but their own attacking struggles continued- failing to test Mike Maignan in the Rosoneri goal.
In the end, the result was a pretty anticlimactic 0-0 draw, with the teams canceling each other out when it mattered most.
The draw does not suit either team's ambitions.
Juventus failed to usurp Atalanta who are still a point ahead, occupying the last automatic Champions League qualification spot. If La Dea win their game in hand, Juventus will be cut adrift in the race for UCL qualification.
The stalemate also means Milan's hope of a first Serie A title in eleven years suffered a major hiccup. The Rosoneri are now 4 points adrift of their city rivals Internazionalé at the summit, having played a game more. The kind of form Inter are in right now, no one would bet against them winning their game in hand. An Inter win would mean a gap of 7 points with 15 games to play - a somewhat uncomfortable situation for Milan to be in. And with talisman Zlatan Ibrahimović suffering yet another injury setback, the climb upto the summit of the Serie-A table is looking like a steep one for the red half of Milan.