The Swede scored on his return as Milan defeated Lazio 2-0 at San Siro.
AC Milan picked up a comprehensive 2-0 win against Lazio to maintain their impressive start to this season.
Lazio, who had been unstoppable before today’s game, suffered the first defeat of the season.
Milan, who were dominant from the start, opened the account after Rafael Leao found the nets at the stroke of half-time.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who made his first start in four months after recovering from injury, added another one to Milan’s tally after coming as a substitute.
Here are the three talking points from Rossoneri’s impressive win.
Zlatan announces his return in style
The Swedish attacker made his much-anticipated return today, coming in as a substitute for the goal-scorer Leao. He made an instant impact by scoring the decisive goal, tapping Ante Rebic’s pass into the nets. Ibrahimovic will turn 40 in a few weeks but he is still playing at an elite level. The Swede’s return must also have enhanced the team’s morale moving forward.
Leao scores for the second game in a row
Leao was on the scoresheet in Milan’s thumping win against Cagliari before the international break. Today, he put on an impressive display in the attack that culminated in the opening goal for Milan. The Portuguese youngster’s consistency had been questioned before but he can build on the impressive start to be a key player for Milan this season.
Lazio had no answers to Milan’s aggressive approach.
From the beginning, Milan constantly put Biancocelesti on the backfoot through their intense pressing. None of the key players including Ciro Immobile, Pedro, Luis Alberto and Milinkovic Savic made an impact today while manager Maurizio Sarri failed to find any solution. Rossoneri maintained their high tempo throughout the game and punished Lazio in transitions.
A much-needed win for Milan ahead of the Liverpool clash.
Tonight’s win has taken Milan to the top of the Serie A table with 9 points and they are the only unbeaten team alongside Napoli in Serie A so far. Rossoneri’s focus will now be on Thursday’s Champions League clash against Liverpool. The Reds will enter into the contest on the back of an impressive run in the Premier League so far whereas Milan must have gained much confidence after today’s victory.
