WATCH: Highlights as Real Madrid start with slow defeat at AC Milan courtesy of Nigerian winger
Real Madrid They opened their pre-season campaign with a 1-0 defeat at AC Milan in Chicago, as they fell at Soldier Field in front of just under 60,000 fans.
The Blancos worked mainly with youngsters in pre-season, but only Mario Martin and Raul Asencio were not part of the first team and started against Milan. The Italian side started better, and soon forced a good save from Thibaut Courtois.
#RealMadrid started his preseason last night, with a 1-0 defeat to # AC Milancourtesy of Samu Chukwueze.pic.twitter.com/1tPrP6nygG
— Football España (@footballespana_) August 1, 2024
With the Rossoneri pressing high under new coach Paulo Fonseca, they cut Real Madrid off the ball frequently in midfield, and a combination of the post, Courtois and poor finishing kept them out in the first half. During the first period, there was probably the most promising spell for Los Blancos as well, however, with Endrick Felipe, Brahim Diaz and Arda Guler combining well at times, with the latter putting in the best performance of the night for the team from Carlo Ancelotti.
The second half saw many changes, with Antonio Rudiger, Luka Modric, Endrick Felipe, Guler, Courtois and Jesus Vallejo all coming on, and one of the introductions was the unfortunate Cesar Palacios. Just seven minutes later, the academy midfielder was forced off with an injury and replaced by Alvaro Rodriguez. Endrick was very much the center of attention for the most part, and showed flashes of his pace and touch in the opening half, but was largely limited to that.
Ten minutes into the second half, a familiar enemy in Samu Chukwueze finished a counterattack well after the ball was lost by Brahim, opening the scoring for Milan. Real Madrid's late response saw Fran Garcia's effort blocked in the last minute, and Rodriguez cleared by goalkeeper Lorenzo Torriani, but there was little else on offer.
After the match, Carlo Ancelotti noted that he was pleased with the attitude and fight of his team. There will no doubt be more of this on show with El Clasico then against Barcelona on Saturday night.
