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Champions League, Gp C Matchday 4 - 3/11/09 (19.45 UK)
Milan 1-1 Real Madrid
Benzema 29 (R), Ronaldinho pen 35 (M)
San Siro

Ronaldinho replied to Karim Benzema in a 1-1 draw, but Alexandre Pato had a goal controversially disallowed.

The Rossoneri conquered the Bernabeu two weeks ago 3-2, but made a few changes for the return leg. Marco Borriello replaced Pippo Inzaghi with more mature full-backs, while Massimo Ambrosini stepped in for Gennaro Gattuso. Kaka was given a warm welcome on his San Siro comeback, but Cristiano Ronaldo was still injured for the 13th all-time meeting between these clubs.

Nelson Dida's howler gave Real a goal in Madrid, but he has been on great form since. Nonetheless, his poor clearance prompted a chance and then he palmed a deflected Karim Benzema strike out from under the bar.

Weak Gonzalo Higuain and Lassana Diarra efforts were comfortably smothered, but Ronaldinho wanted a penalty for a shirt-tug as he waited for Alexandre Pato's cross. Real looked like a different team to their recent crisis, as Sergio Ramos flashed an angled drive across the face of goal.

The San Siro crowd started to mutter when Benzema drilled inches wide of the far post, as Real were dominating. However, on 26 minutes Clarence Seedorf went on a classic counter-attack and spread it for Pato to dummy Albiol, but Iker Casillas rushed out for a desperate full-body save.

Real eventually took a deserved lead. Andrea Pirlo lost the ball in midfield, Kaka skipped past Seedorf and his deflected shot was only parried into the path of Benzema. That was only the second ever Madrid goal away to Milan after Joseito Iglesias in the 1956 Champions Cup semi-final, but Benzema may have been slightly offside.

The referee pointed to the spot when Zambrotta's counter was cut short by a Pepe handling offence, but replays suggest the ball may well have hit his back rather than the arm. Former Barcelona star Ronaldinho stepped up and buried a powerful kick into the near top corner for his first Champions League penalty in four years.

Pato thought he had turned the game around completely a minute later, but it was incorrectly ruled offside after he had flicked on a long ball forward and beat Arbeloa. If the penalty was soft, then this decision was harsh.

Dida blocked a fierce Kaka snapshot before half-time. Milan were more confident after the break, as Borriello just failed to get on the end of a Ronaldinho cross and Pato was booked for a handling offence after drilling wide. Ambrosini got to a Pirlo free kick from seven yards, but the ball came off his shoulder rather than his head and went off target.

Xabi Alonso anticipated Thiago Silva from point-blank range on a Pirlo free kick, but Dida also fumbled Kaka's corner and got away with it. Borriello just failed to make contact with Dinho's cross from the left, as he went close to a replica of his splendid volley against Parma.

Raul, Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Pippo Inzaghi came off the bench, as the veterans took control. Super Pippo had a chance almost immediately when Pato put the cross to the back post, but he was surprised by Pepe's error and shinned it over from six yards.

Inzaghi's right-foot strike hit the side-netting, but Dida needed a spectacular one-handed save to deny Raul's angled drive from point-blank range. He also had his palms stung by a Marcelo effort.

<Post-Match Comments


Milan: Dida; Oddo, Nesta, Thiago Silva, Zambrotta; Seedorf, Pirlo, Ambrosini; Pato, Borriello (Inzaghi 79), Ronaldinho

Real Madrid: Casillas; Sergio Ramos, Albiol, Pepe, Arbeloa; Xabi Alonso, L Diarra; Kaka, Benzema (Van Nistelrooy 82), Marcelo; Higuain (Raul 74)

Ref: Brych (Ger)


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Pictures: Richiardi (Milan)


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