AC Milan's state this season is not as outstanding as before, after 18 rounds of league games, although Milan ranks third in the standings, but has fallen behind the top of the table Inter Milan as many as 9 points, has lost the initiative to compete for the league title early, and the Champions League group stage has not been able to break through; Pioli's position is also in jeopardy. Fortunately, in the round of 16 of the Coppa Italia, Milan relied on Te'o's brave play and Jovic's double sound at home, and easily defeated Cagliari 4:1 to advance to the top 8.
Cagliari returned to Serie A last season under former Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri but are currently third from bottom in the league table. Considering that the opponent is not strong, Pioli has rarely made some rotations, Maignan, Giroud, Leao have all stayed on the bench for the time being, Te'o, Reinders started together, Chukwueze, Jovic and other substitutes have been given opportunities to perform.
However, Milan did not play smoothly after the opening, in the 4th minute, relying on a corner kick opportunity, Petagna hit the goal with a close-range header, thanks to Mirante's quick response to make a save to avoid falling behind early; Milan, who reacted, no longer took it lightly, in the 8th minute, Adli sent a scalpel-like straight stop, but Jovic's diagonal push was blocked by Radunovic; in the 20th minute, Te'o sent a direct pass, Hazidiakos slid in front of Jovic to clear the siege.
In the 29th minute, Milan finally broke the balance on the field, Te'o sent a long pass from the left ribs, the Cagliari defender unexpectedly rose to the top, Jovic even stopped and volleyed into the net!1:0! A goal in hand, Milan played more relaxed, in the 42nd minute, after Te'o broke the ball in the backfield, he ran directly for a long time, and the Milan team deputy followed the left side as if no one was in the land, and then passed diagonally after the inside cut the ball, Jovic followed up with a small angle and fell to the ground to complete the brace, 2:0!
As a player brought in by Real Madrid for 60 million euros in the past, Jovic's career at Real Madrid can be described as a mess, and if it weren't for Hazard, he would be regarded as the worst signing in Real Madrid's history. Real Madrid did not hesitate to terminate Jovic's contract early last summer in order to send him away, and although Jovic scored 13 goals in Fiorentina last season, most of them were scored in the game. In the summer window, the Purple Lilies also gave up Jovic, and Milan was able to take advantage of the situation to get a free sign, and Jovic's form has finally picked up recently, scoring 5 goals in 5 games.
In the 50th minute of the second half, Jimenez broke through to the bottom line on the left side and crossed, Chukwueze shot in front of the goal, and Traore scored his first goal when he was about to fall to the ground, 3:0! In the case that the victory was decided, Pioli also changed some of the main forces to find the feeling of the game, although in the 88th minute, Simic's pass was broken, and Azi scored a goal from a distance! But in the 90th minute, Leao showed his personal ability, and he cut inside along the left side to freeze the score at 4:1!
After successfully eliminating Cagliari, Milan advanced to the last eight of Italy, and despite the Champions League group stage exit, Milan still beat Newcastle to qualify for the Europa League, considering the difficulty of the league title, the Coppa Italia and Europa League may be Milan's key title targets this season. If he can win one of these trophies and retain his Champions League spot, Pioli may not be sacked.