Football Italia Live Blog
This page is no longer live, but check back soon for more Live Blogs!

21:55 That is all for the Liveblog

Check the main site for more post-match coverage.

21:54 Milan 3-0 Rennes

 

21:53 FT: Milan 3-0 Rennes

Ruben Loftus-Cheek pair of headers and Rafael Leao strike. 2nd leg is next Thursday.

21:53 Blas chance

Blas pulls back from the by-line, but straight at Maignan. Meanwhile, Nagida has injured himself and is carried off.

21:49 Stoppages

Into 4 minutes of stoppages at San Siro.

21:47 Bennacer close

Bennacer free kick SKIMS the crossbar!

21:45 Reijnders brought down

Reijnders sprints through the centre, is tripped just outside the box by Nagida. Only a yellow card, as there were two other teammates blocking his path.

21:43 Theo Hernandez over the bar

Scorcher on the half-volley over the bar from the edge of the area.

21:40 Milan change

Adli on, Pulisic off

21:37 Rennes chance

Dangerous cross whipped in, Gouiri only glances the header and turns it wide.

21:34 Rennes triple change

Nagida, Salah and Blas on, Desire Doue, Matusiwa and Truffert off

21:33 Subs

Bennacer and Terracciano on for Milan, Loftus-Cheek and Florenzi off.

21:31 Double Milan chance!

Pulisic with another good run, his shot is parried by Mandanda, then the Okafor follow-up is basically cleared off the line by Matusiwa!

21:30 Double Maignan save!

A goal here could make all the difference on aggregate, Maignan gets down twice to parry from first Gouiri and then Santamaria.

21:29 Pulisic run

Pulisic cuts inside from the right and his shot is charged down by Theate in the box.

21:28 Gouiri wide

Rennes again, Gouiri drills not far wide from the edge of the area. Milan starting to relax a little too much, Pioli is not happy.

21:27 Rennes corner

That was dangerous! Cross would’ve found Terrier for a free header, but Thiaw put it out for a corner.

21:25 Rennes changes

Kalimuendo and G Doue off, Gouiri and Seidu on

21:20 Milan changes

Leao and Kjaer off, Okafor and Thiaw on. The return of Thiaw after three months out.

21:18 Rafael Leao goal

 

21:16 Reijnders over

Kjaer and Mandanda don’t make contact with the Florenzi corner, Leao knocks it back to the edge of the area where Reijnders controls and fires over.

21:15 Save on Pulisic

Nearly 4-0, Pulisic give and go with Leao, angled drive beaten away at the near post by Mandanda.

21:11 Milan 3-0 Rennes: Rafael Leao!

Those two know each other so well. Rafael Leao back-heel flick sends Theo Hernandez down the left, he already knows where the pass back will be and is ready to redirect it into the far corner with the inside of the right boot!

21:10 Milan 2-0 Rennes

 

21:06 Milan 2-0 Rennes: Ruben Loftus-Cheek!

A brace for the former Chelsea midfielder! Mandanda had made an extraordinary save on the Kjaer header from the corner, but could do little on the Loftus-Cheek diving header follow-up.

21:05 Corner for Milan

Loftus-Cheek knocks it down for Pulisic, roll across intercepted for a Milan corner.

21:03 2nd half kicks off: Milan 1-0 Rennes

No changes.

20:55 Stat

 

20:54 That Lukaku celebration explained

 

20:47 Half-Time: Milan 1-0 Rennes

Loftus-Cheek with the header on a Florenzi cross.

20:46 Period of Rennes pressure

Cross into the box, Kalimuendo goes down rather easily under pressure from Florenzi, referee is not interested.

20:41 Loftus-Cheek goal

 

20:40 Milan mess

Oh dear. Leao cross from the left, Giroud tries the overhead kick, Loftus-Cheek attempts a header, they basically collide.

20:39 Doue chance

Desire Doue, one of the two brothers playing tonight, runs forward and his shot is blocked by Maignan.

20:38 De Rossi comments

 

20:37 Save on Giroud

Strong Pulisic counter-attack from midfield, feeds Giroud, whose finish is smothered by Mandanda.

20:35 Leao chance

Another good run from RLC down the right, roll across for Leao, who can’t seem to decide what to do and eventually a weak shot is charged down.

20:32 Milan 1-0 Rennes: Ruben Loftus-Cheek!

Header on the Florenzi cross from the right! It was a free header, but from 12 yards he still had a lot of work to do!

20:29 Milan opportunity

Leao stands a cross up to the back post, just beyond Loftus-Cheek!

20:27 Rennes again

Doue’ on the counter, Musah keeps up with him and Kjaer cleans up.

20:24 Rennes chance

Sudden Bourigeaud snapshot from distance, that was not too far wide!

20:23 Leao header

Leao header at the back post on the corner, hits the defender, ricochets back off him, goal kick.

20:22 Milan corner

That is some, er, brave defending from Theate, who charged down a cross with his delicates. Corner for Milan.

20:21 Theate into the stands

Rennes make a rare foray forward, until Theate balloons a shot into the sky.

20:17 Theo Hernandez injured

They both went sliding in to meet that ball, G Doue’ ended up crashing into Theo Hernandez’s ribs with his knee. Sore one, but he’s back on his feet.

20:15 Pulisic offside

Corner to the edge of the box for a Florenzi volley, into the path of Pulisic, who was offside.

20:14 Milan gifted a corner

Mandanda could not reach that poor back header.

20:11 Milan chance

Loftus-Cheek bursts away from Santamaria down the right, pulls back from the by-line and Musah can’t keep the finish on target!

20:09 Theo Hernandez over

On the second corner, it is laid off to the edge of the area, where Theo Hernandez blasts over on the bounce.

20:07 Leao off the crossbar!

Lovely control with his chest and half-volley, that took a deflection to thump the crossbar for a corner!

20:05 Giorgio Furlani comments

 

20:01 We have kick-off in Milan vs. Rennes!

19:57 Out come the teams!

Great atmosphere at San Siro.

19:50 Rennes vs. Milan line-ups

Milan dropped down from the Champions League and Rennes finished second in their Europa League group, though their form has picked up considerably recently with eight consecutive wins in all competition.

Davide Calabria, Fikayo Tomori, Pierre Kalulu and Tommaso Pobega are injured, with Samuel Chukwueze not back yet from Africa Cup of Nations duty.

Tijjani Reijnders was suspended in Serie A at the weekend, so he returns with Yunus Musah giving Ismael Bennacer and Yacine Adli a rest.

Simon Kjaer can start despite a few fitness concerns, with Alessandro Florenzi at right-back and Malick Thiaw on the bench after a three-month absence.

Rennes are missing Fabian Rieder and Enzo Le Fée, but can rely on former Bologna defender Arthur Theate and veteran goalkeeper Steve Mandanda, who turns 39 next month.

Milan: Maignan; Florenzi, Kjaer, Gabbia, Theo Hernandez; Musah, Reijnders; Pulisic, Loftus-Cheek, Rafael Leao; Giroud

Rennes: Mandanda; G Doue, Omari, Theate, Truffert; Bourigeaud, Matusiwa, Santamaria, D Doue; Terrier, Kalimuendo

Ref: Dabanovic (MNE)

19:50 Still time to vote

 

19:42 FT: Feyenoord 1-1 Roma

 

19:41 Feyenoord well-worked move

A well-worked passing move, but it ends up being passed directly to Svilar.

19:35 Feyenoord hit the post!

Ivanusec free kick surprised Svilar, but thumped the near post! He pretended to put a cross in and then just went near post, that was cheeky.

19:35 Into stoppages

7 minutes in Rotterdam!

19:34 Svilar save!

Powerful Santiago Gimenez angled drive, Svilar gets down to beat it away at the near post!

19:31 Roma changes

Dybala and Bove off, Baldanzi and Cristante on

19:31 Bove booked

Bove booked for a very late challenge, he will be suspended for the second leg.

19:28 Curious new celebration

 

19:26 Svilar has cramp

Not often you see a goalkeeper get cramp… Rui Patricio is very half-heartedly starting to warm up, Svilar getting treatment for quite a long time. Feyenoord fans jeer – can’t blame them.

19:26 Roma change

Karsdorp off, Celik on.

19:24 Lukaku record

 

19:24 Pioli comments

 

19:23 Feyenoord changes

Nieuwkoop and Paixao off, Milambo and Read on

19:18 Bove block

Bove flings himself in the way of a Wieffer shot.

19:16 Lukaku goal

 

19:15 Feyenoord change

Stengs off, Ivanusec on

19:14 Dybala wide

Dybala free kick goes wide of the near post.

19:13 Dybala having a bad day

Through ball finds Dybala in the box, but his first touch is poor. The move continues and Mancini is fouled by Stengs – yellow card and free kick.

19:11 Feyenoord 1-1 Roma: Romelu Lukaku!

Spinazzola whips in the cross from the left, Lukaku has to crouch down to get the glancing header in front of his marker and flicks it into the far top corner from six yards!

19:09 Better from Roma

Nice passing move, but the goalkeeper intercepts the Karsdorp roll across from the right.

19:07 Subs in Rotterdam

Gimenez and Lingr on, Ueda and Minteh off

El Shaarawy on, Zalewski off

19:06 Feyenoord pressure

Long Feyenoord passing move, they are pinning Roma back. So much that the ball hasn’t gone out of play and the substitutions haven’t been made yet.

19:05 Thiaw returns

Malick Thiaw on the Milan bench after 3 months out.

 

19:03 Poor Roma corner

Back to the horrible corners from Dybala. More bad news – Santiago Gimenez is about to come on.

19:01 Zalewski wide

Again promising for Roma with the Mancini cross, but Zalewski header is very, very wide.

18:59 Lukaku over

Spinazzola cross, Lukaku can’t keep the header down.

18:56 Dybala over the bar

Again, not great from La Joya, who turns well only to blast well over.

18:52 Oof

Bove throws himself in the way of the free kick, touched on by Stengs for Ueda, and that is going to leave a bruise.

18:52 Milan vs. Rennes poll

 

18:51 Llorente booked

Llorente foul on Ueda just outside the D, yellow card and dangerous spot for a free kick.

18:50 2nd half kicks off: Feyenoord 1-0 Roma

18:50 Line-ups

 

18:48 Milan vs. Rennes line-ups

Milan: Maignan; Florenzi, Kjaer, Gabbia, Theo Hernandez; Musah, Reijnders; Pulisic, Loftus-Cheek, Rafael Leao; Giroud

Rennes: Mandanda; G Doue, Omari, Theate, Truffert; Bourigeaud, Matusiwa, Santamaria, D Doue; Terrier, Kalimuendo

Ref: Dabanovic (MNE)

18:37 Paixao goal

 

18:33 Half-Time: Feyenoord 1-0 Roma

The half ends with another frankly awful Dybala free kick. Not sure what is up with La Joya tonight, but it’s not good.

18:31 Feyenoord 1-0 Roma: Paixao

Totally against the run of play and totally unmarked too. Cross from the left by Hartman, Paixao completely free header at the back post and he takes it well. Where was the marking?!

18:30 Lukaku chance!

That was a free header on the corner, straight at the goalkeeper! Should’ve done better.

18:29 Save on Dybala

Wellenruther rushes off his line to use his body as a shield on Dybala after a smart give and go with Lukaku.

18:26 Roma pressure

Zalewski roll across for Lukaku intercepted, better corner from Dybala that time, but cleared. Roma building pressure here, then Spinazzola cross, Bove can’t keep the header on target.

18:24 Paredes off the bar!

Absolutely ferocious Leandro Paredes strike and the goalkeeper just fingertips it onto the crossbar!

18:24 Milan bus arrives

 

18:23 Wieffer wide

Another really poor Dybala free kick, that’s been several now today, and then Wieffer drills wide.

18:19 Yellow card

Minteh booked for flailing an arm on Zalewski’s neck. That was suggested by the linesman and more down to an accumulation of fouls.

18:18 Better from Feyenoord

A well-worked move sparked by Stengs, but the Minteh finish ricocheted around off a couple of Roma players in the box.

18:15 Lukaku offside

A great tackle, but irrelevant because Lukaku started the run a fraction too early on the Pellegrini through ball.

18:12 Feyenoord move

Cross from the right, crowd of players go for it from seven yards, nobody really gets much on it, Paixao eventually prods meekly into the arms of Svilar.

18:10 Roma attack

Dybala tries to break into the box, claims for handball outside it, then Zalewski gets down the left and tries to roll across for Lukaku, but it’s intercepted.

18:09 Wieffer chance

Wieffer found in acres of space through the middle, but he seems to lack confidence and the finish from distance is rather weak, straight at Svilar.

18:08 Crowd annoyed at Mancini

Paixao a bit too aggressive, fouls Karsdorp, then Mancini takes ages to tie his laces up before taking the free kick.

18:07 Stengs on target

Stengs shot is on target, but also straight at Svilar.

18:05 Paixao chance!

Zalewski skips past one player, but then the marking is doubled up, Paixao sent through, he runs into the box and scuffs the finish inches wide!

18:04 Feyenoord corner

Not much came of that set play either.

18:01 Lukaku header

Dybala cross from the right, Lukaku header straight at the Feyenoord goalkeeper.

18:00 Pellegrini free kick deflected

Off the wall, corner for Roma. On that Paredes corner, Bove can’t get a clean header, only grazes it.

17:59 First yellow card

Can’t really argue with that, Beelen was all over Lukaku trying to hold him back.

17:58 Feyenoord corner

Poor Dybala free kick, then even worse Llorente clearance gifts Feyenoord a corner, but Svilar plucks it out of the air.

17:54 Roma chance

The offside flag went up eventually, not entirely sure why. Pellegrini had sprung the offside trap, the goalkeeper got his gloves to it, then Dybala follow-up cleared off the line by Hancko!

17:53 Poor from Dybala

Dybala corner low and doesn’t beat the first man.

17:52 Roma corner

Lukaku holds up the ball for Bove strike, deflected for a corner.

17:51 Too aggressive

Minteh already late on Spinazzola a couple of times, now clatters into Svilar. The referee tells him to calm down.

17:47 Very aggressive start

Tackles flying in from all sides, ref letting more or less everything go so far.

17:45 In case you were wondering

Feyenoord top scorer Santiago Gimenez is only fit for the bench with a calf issue. Huijsen and Kristensen are not on the UEFA list for Roma.

17:45 We have kick-off in Feyenoord vs. Roma!

17:42 Feyenoord fans

Huge banner quotes Gladiator: ‘At my signal, Rotterdam, unleash Hell!’

17:42 Out come the teams!

Feyenoord: Wellenreuther; Nieuwkoop, Hancko, Beelen, Hartman; Stengs, Zerrouki, Wieffer; Minteh, Ueda, Paixao

Roma: Svilar; Karsdorp, Mancini, Llorente, Spinazzola; Bove, Paredes, Pellegrini; Dybala, Lukaku, Zalewski

Ref: Petrescu (ROM)

17:37 Lukaku

 

17:29 Still time to vote

 

17:29 Dybala

 

17:16 Roma warming up

 

17:16 Edoardo Bove (Roma)

 

17:07 Meanwhile, in Milan

There were meant to be 8,000 Rennes fans. It’s reportedly closer to 10,000.

 

17:05 Is Lukaku ok?

 

16:55 Roma incoming

 

16:53 De Rossi in the house

 

16:40 POLL

 

16:37 Line-ups

 

16:34 Feyenoord vs. Roma line-ups

Feyenoord: Wellenreuther; Nieuwkoop, Hancko, Beelen, Hartman; Stengs, Zerrouki, Wieffer; Minteh, Ueda, Paixao

Roma: Svilar; Karsdorp, Mancini, Llorente, Spinazzola; Bove, Paredes, Pellegrini; Dybala, Lukaku, Zalewski

Ref: Petrescu (ROM)

16:10 On their way

 

Join us for all the build-up and action from the Europa League play-offs, as Roma visit Feyenoord and Milan host Rennes.

We begin at 17.45 GMT in Rotterdam with Daniele De Rossi’s continental coaching debut against a Feyenoord side who the Giallorossi beat in the Conference League Final and last season’s Europa League quarter-final.

At 20.00 GMT, Milan welcome Stade Rennais to San Siro after dropping down from the Champions League group phase.

These are the first legs of the play-off, hoping to reach the Round of 16, with the deciders next Thursday.

 

One thought on “Europa League Liveblog: Feyenoord-Roma and Milan-Rennes”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *