Ismaël Bennacer’s strike in last Wednesday’s San Siro first leg had given Milan a 1-0 aggregate lead heading into the return meeting at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, where Olivier Giroud’s first-half goal ensured Victor Osimhen’s late headed leveller on the night only proved a consolation for Luciano Spalletti’s side in the tie.
Giroud had seen a 22nd-minute penalty saved by Alex Meret but, shortly before the break, Rafael Leão – who also won the spot-kick – ended a brilliant run by squaring the ball to the French forward who gleefully swept it into an almost unguarded net.
That was one of several dangerous breaks by AC Milan, who generally soaked up persistent Napoli pressure efficiently.
Now needing two goals to force extra-time, the hosts also saw a penalty kept out as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was denied impressively by the excellent Mike Maignan in the 82nd minute.
Osimhen nodded Giacomo Raspadori’s cross beyond Maignan in the third minute of stoppage time, but it proved too late to cue a comeback.
The seven-time European Cup winners – currently fourth in Serie A, 22 points off Napoli, and widely seen as underdogs in this tie – therefore sealed their first semi-final place in the continent’s premier club competition since 2007, when they last won it.
With Inter 2-0 up on aggregate heading into the San Siro second leg of their quarter-final against Benfica – the other tie on this side of the draw – there is a very real possibility of a Milan derby in the last-four next month.
Napoli struggles against AC Milan continue
When these two Italian outfits were drawn against each other just over a month ago, the general feeling was that the Gli Azzurri were big favourites to progress.
That was arguably the case not just in relation to the tie itself, but also to the side of the draw they were on. The Neapolitans’ Champions League displays and commanding Serie A position painted the picture of a team who would have too much for Milan in the last-eight and then for either Benfica or Inter in the semi-finals.
That feeling arguably began to shift early this month, though. Stefano Pioli’s side travelled to Naples on the night of 2nd April and came away with a breathtaking 4-0 Serie A victory, thanks to a Leão brace alongside Brahim Díaz and Alexis Saelemaekers efforts.
Napoli’s 2-1 win in September’s reverse fixture had been a relatively unconvincing one, too.
There was an increasing sense that Milan and Pioli might just have the league leaders’ number. They appeared to possess a successful formula for how to play against them and – although each of these three games in April have seen them enjoy less possession than they did in the September defeat – that idea has largely been proven true over the course of this tie.
Having been virtually faultless in so many ways so far this season, Napoli – who were missing centre-back Kim Min-jae and midfielder André-Frank Zambo Anguissa through suspension – will likely be keen to assess how they can operate more effectively against the Rossoneri in future.
They plugged away admirably for much of this second leg but often felt about as vulnerable as they did threatening – even with 74% possession.
Kvaratskhelia – arguably as stunning a breakout star as has been seen on the Champions League stage for many a year – was at the forefront of things again for Napoli. Milan skipper Davide Calabria, in particular, put in an excellent shift against the Georgian winger at right-back, though, and helped to ensure his genuine impact was limited.
The visitors, generally, were able to remain compact in the face of the hosts’ pressure and then break with vigour when opportunities arose.
A relative lack of ruthlessness – and concession of a goal at the end of an incisive attack in each leg of the tie – ultimately proved the Gli Azzurri’s downfall within this quarter-final.
Osimhen impact decisively limited
In some ways, how the tie ended brought this into sharper focus.
The Nigerian forward got just 24 touches over the course of the second leg. Teammate Matteo Politano, who came off injured in the 34th minute, and Milan’s Díaz, who was himself substituted in the 59th, were the only fellow starters who got less.
As some of Erling Haaland’s matches for Manchester City have shown this term, such apparently limited involvement for the player leading the line isn’t always a major issue. On this occasion, however, it seemingly was.
Osimhen took just two shots within the match, with the first of those that was on-target leading to his late goal. It was also the 24-year-old’s low 80th-minute delivery that led to Fikayo Tomori’s handball and Napoli’s penalty.
It is difficult to escape the feeling that, had he been more heavily involved – as difficult as that might have been against a deep, compact unit like the Rossoneri’s – the night could have had a very different outcome.
Pioli gets the balance right again
As referenced above, the Milan head coach and his team appear to have a happy knack of performing to an impressively high level against the side who currently hold a 14-point lead at the top of Serie A.
That they have now knocked out the team who have, this term, often been described as the best in Europe ought to be one of several sources of considerable confidence as they head into May’s semi-final tie and look to secure a top-four place domestically.
Logically enough, given their lead and Napoli’s clear strengths, they appeared content to sit relatively deep and protect what they had here. That limited the genuinely dangerous spaces that the hosts could work their way into and gave Milan all the more chance to launch counter-attacks.
Which they did. And they did so superbly.
Prior to the goal, Giroud had had the game’s two best chances – courtesy of his saved penalty and a one-on-one that Meret also kept out well.
The opener drove home the fact that the visitors are a side capable of hurting opponents in several contexts – particularly when considering the superbly rounded attributes that Leão possesses.
Once again, they had created a scenario where they could minimise several of Napoli’s threats while maximising some of their own key strengths.
Maignan and Leão’s crucial contributions
Within a highly effective collective, goalkeeper Maignan and winger Leão were arguably the two individuals who came up big to the greatest extent for Milan over the course of the tie.
Having made five saves in the first leg, Maignan – now seemingly well-placed to be France’s long-term No.1 – made three more vital ones here.
The penalty save from Kvaratskhelia undeniably stands out. It does so on several levels.
In terms of technique – the effort was low and well-struck and required a genuinely excellent stop. That the 27-year-old also sent it behind for a corner, rather than back out into the danger area, enhanced it further.
In terms of context – Napoli getting themselves back to within a goal of levelling the tie in the 82nd minute would have likely cued a highly uncomfortable last 10 or so for Milan.
There were few signs of them wilting, but it doesn’t feel unreasonable to suggest that this was a save that may well have prevented this quarter-final from heading in a considerably different direction.
Leão, meanwhile, again showed why he is widely viewed as one of Europe’s most exciting talents. After winning the match's first spot-kick, the 23-year-old might just have provided the assist of the season for Giroud’s goal.
After picking up the ball 30 yards from his own net, the Portugal international evaded each of Tanguy Ndombélé, Giovanni Di Lorenzo and Amir Rrahmani on the way into the Napoli box before he drew out Meret and unselfishly squared for his teammate to slot home.
The composure and awareness he displayed to tee-up the 36-year-old was made all the more admirable by the dynamism and poise that preceded it.
If Milan are to progress to the final and give themselves a genuine shot of winning an eighth European Cup, it feels likely that both Maignan and Leão will play key roles.