Two wins from two! After their victory over Manchester City at the Yankee Stadium, AC Milan also defeated Real Madrid at the Soldier Field in Chicago. The Rossoneri's second success on their DIRECTV Soccer Champions Tour arrived courtesy of the impressive Samuel Chukwueze, who bagged the only goal of the game at the start of the second half and continued his excellent pre-season form. The win against the reigning European champions was the reward for the work put in by Fonseca's side, who grew over the course of the 90 minutes and created various opportunities while also producing a solid display defensively.
Overall, it was an encouraging performance from the Rossoneri, beyond the fact that both teams were missing several players. Ancelotti's Los Blancos will begin their season before AC Milan - the UEFA Super Cup awaits Real Madrid in two weeks - but it was the Diavolo who impressed more, including from a fitness perspective. And the result will only boost the players' confidence and morale. The Rossoneri will resume training tomorrow - Friday 2 August - with a double session ahead of the final match of their US Tour, which will see them face Barcelona in Baltimore. Keep it up, lads!
AC Milan vs. Real Madrid: The Match Highlights
The Rossoneri made a lively start and came close after just four minutes: Chukwueze regained possession high up the pitch and tested Courtois with a left-footed effort. Three minutes later, Liberali found Nasti, who was also denied by the Belgian goalkeeper. After a promising spell for Real, AC Milan went back on the attack in the 24th minute, with Chukwueze curling just off target. There wasn't much goalmouth action for the rest of the half, although Díaz did threaten for Los Blancos on the 36-minute mark and Tomori unsuccessfully went for an acrobatic overhead kick from a free-kick in first-half stoppage time.
Coach Fonseca didn't make any changes at the break and saw his side take a 55th-minute lead: Tomori won back possession in midfield and found Liberali, who broke forward and found Chukwueze for a left-footed near-post finish. The scorer and assist provider then combined again a few minutes later, but Liberali couldn't keep his attempt down (59'). AC Milan kept on pushing, with a 63rd-minute header from Thiaw striking the bar. Following the first substitutions made by Fonseca, an inspired Chukwueze picked out Pulisic, who was thwarted by Lunin's foot (73'). Real almost equalised in the 83rd minute, but Torriani rushed out to foil Álvaro Rodríguez. After a fine burst forward by Jiménez, a 85th-minute strike by Cuenca lacked precision. After three minutes of added time, AC Milan ran out 1-0 winners.
Endrick's Debut: A Mixed Bag
Real Madrid teenager Endrick was hailed by a teammate and his head coach Carlo Ancelotti after making his Los Blancos debut against AC Milan in Chicago on Wednesday. The Champions League holders lost 1-0 to Ancelotti's former club at Soldier Field, but Endrick was a rare bright spark alongside Arda Guler.
Following the defeat, Lucas Vazquez had kind words to say about the Brazilian, who got minutes as promised by Ancelotti after completing a move from Palmeiras last month which could reach $65 million in value. "Endrick looks very good, to be honest. In these last three training sessions he has been good, he needs to adapt a little to our way of playing, but he has brutal conditions, [and has made] an incredible start," Vazquez said.
Endrick is of course Madrid's second big signing of the summer after Kylian Mbappe, who has landed at the Bernabeu on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain. Vazquez called the Frenchman a "world-class player", who everyone is "looking forward" to playing with "because the best have to be at Madrid, of course".
Madrid will need as much firepower as it can get considering the seven competitions it will contest this term including the newly-imagined Club World Cup. "A season in which we can play 72 games is going to be very demanding," Vazquez noted.
"I think it is a very big motivation to be able to fight for those seven titles, we always set ourselves the demand to go for everything.
On a personal level I am happy for the [comtract] renewal, for being where I wanted to be. On a personal level I want to improve on the previous season with more games, more goals, more assists, more defensive work. In football you never stop learning," the former Spain international added.
As for Ancelotti, he remarked that Endrick "has something special".
"He has a great ability to be very fast in a few meters and that is rare to see a player like that," the manager explained, while also stressing that Endrick "combined well" with colleagues such as Arda Guler.
Endrick's next outing could be his first taste of El Clasico on August 3 against his new club's bitter rivals FC Barcelona.
Ancelotti's Post-Match Thoughts
Carlo Ancelotti spoke to the media after Real Madrid opened the 2024/25 campaign with a pre-season friendly defeat to AC Milan with a 1-0 scoreline in Chicago. He answered a question from Kiyan Sobhani of Managing Madrid to praise the performance of Arda Güler and outline his possible role this season, saying, “he has arrived very well, he worked a lot during the vacations. He has arrived more powerful, more resistant, and with the same quality. This season will be important for him, with more prominence. Arda’s best position is between the lines, he can be a 10, he can be a right back... He shouldn’t play on the left, with that left foot he has. If he has the opportunity to shoot, he should do it. In the future, he could be one of the three midfielders.”
Ancelotti on what he liked the most about the performance: “We competed, we fought, we did good things. The first game, with a lot of young players, the important thing was to compete. We had some good moments, others that need to be improved. It is quite normal. The evaluation is positive, it is a dream for the youth players to play this match. We have managed better with the veterans, but now they should not play more than 45 minutes. Now we have to prepare for another match. We have two more. The Brazilians are back, let’s see if they can play something in the Clásico. This is what these matches are for. Those who arrived on the 15th are already in good condition.”
Ancelotti on Endrick's debut: “It’s difficult to draw a conclusion. What I see is that he has something special, he can reach top speed in very little space, very skilled in getting away from his marker, these are qualities that he has. In this sense, he is a talent. It is rare to see a player with these characteristics.”
The Future of Real Madrid's Youngsters
Ancelotti also commented on the future of the young players, including Joan Martínez, who he believes has “important potential” and “everything a central defender needs.” Ancelotti is confident that Martínez can develop into a valuable asset for Real Madrid in the future. He also emphasized the importance of adapting the new signings, noting that it would be difficult to fully integrate players like Endrick and Mbappé in just five days. Overall, Ancelotti expressed optimism about the team's progress and the potential of the young players, setting the stage for an exciting season ahead.
