Magic Mike The Difference Maker Between Milan And Napoli

In a game that was expectedly tight, the one real divider between Milan and Napoli in the first all-Italian quarter final since 2005 could be found in the 86^th minute.

With Napoli 1-0 down, substitute Matteo Politano ran at Theo Hernandez down the right-hand corridor. Politano, as left-footed a player as one can find, twisted and turned, shifted and shunted and in attempt to eke out some room free of Hernandez on the periphery of the box.

Politano managed to fire off an attempted cross with his weaker right foot, which was deflected by Hernandez. The ball landed into the feet of Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo six yards away from the Milan goal. Di Lorenzo took one touch to control the ball, followed by a swing of his right foot and a shot at goal. The shot was goal bound; about to fly into the top corner, until the firm hand of Mike Maignan proved otherwise. Maignan redirected the ball out for a corner with a superb save and kept Milan’s slender lead in tact.

Di Lorenzo could be seen mouthing words in frustration – no doubt not of the family-friendly variety – and slapped Maignan’s chest in begrudging respect for what was a fine save.

And this moment crystallised the key difference between the two sides: Milan had Maignan in goal, and Napoli did not. Had Maignan been in the Napoli goal for Ismael Bennacer’s near-post strike that decided the game, there is the feeling that Maignan would’ve saved it.

Maignan repelled not just Di Lorenzo, but also made crucial saves to deny Piotr Zielinski and Elif Elmas, and the return of ‘Magic Mike’ has come at just the right time for the Rossoneri.

Like their city neighbours Inter, Milan is having an inconsistent season. The reigning Serie A champions are arguably the worst defending champions since, well, Milan, and their disastrous 1996-97 season, epitomised by the return of Arrigo Sacchi for a poorly advised second stint.

Milan is some 22 points away from Napoli, but you wouldn’t have known it from events at San Siro. Milan’s best performances this season have all come in the last two months, and there is little coincidence that a big part of that is the return of Maignan.

Sidelined for four months with a calf injury, Maignan’s authority has brought stability to what has been a leaky defense. They’ve already conceded more goals this season than in the entirety of last. Moreover, Maignan’s reflexes and distribution of the ball, something that understudy Ciprian Tatarusanu simply doesn’t possess, had been sorely missed.

Maignan has kept five clean sheets since making his comeback in the round of 16 second leg against Tottenham in London. Within the context of those two legs against Spurs, Milan’s defence looked more assured with Maignan in between the posts. Maignan and Tatarusanu both have the same number of clean sheets this season, despite the Romanian playing six games and over 500 minutes more.

An in interview with French newspaper L’Equipe heading into the Napoli game, Milan coach Stefano Pioli admits he was impressed by Maignan during a Europa League game against Lille in the 2020/21 season. “That one, you have to follow him.’ His communication and his participation in the game had impressed me,” Pioli said.

When Gigio Donnarumma refused to stay at Milan, there was only one goalkeeper Pioli wanted, and Paolo Maldini was dispatched to France in order to secure a deal. Milan paid a paltry €15m ($16m) for Maignan which, nearly two years later, seems ridiculous. “I was sure he was an excellent goalkeeper but he’s even better than I thought,” Pioli added.

Such has been Maignan’s excellence in his two seasons in Serie A that Donnarumma has all but been forgotten, reduced to a fading memory (except when Italy play at San Siro, in which case he’s unmercifully booed).

As Milan go one step closer to their first Champions League semi final since winning the trophy in 2007 and Victor Osimhen set to return for the second leg, Maignan will need to be magic once more at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona next week. Yet if there’s any goalkeeper able to thwart the Nigerian, it’s Maignan.