AC Milan put on a dazzling display in the Coppa Italia Round of 16, demolishing Sassuolo 6-1 at the San Siro, with Samuel Chukwueze leading the charge.
Chukwueze opened the scoring in the 12th minute with a calm finish, before doubling his tally just nine minutes later, scoring Milan’s third goal in the 21st minute.
The Nigerian winger’s first-half brace set the tone for an emphatic performance that had Milan fans roaring.
His clinical performance energized the home side, who looked unstoppable throughout the match.
The Rossoneri continued their dominance with Tijjani Reijnders scoring in the 17th minute, followed by Rafael Leão’s strike in the 23rd minute to make it 4-0.
In the second half, captain Davide Calabria added a goal in the 56th minute, while new signing Tammy Abraham rounded off the rout with a goal in the 61st.
Sassuolo managed a late consolation goal through Samuele Mulattieri in the 59th minute, but it was little more than a footnote in an otherwise one-sided encounter.
Milan’s superiority was reflected in the stats: 71% possession, 708 passes with a 91% accuracy rate, and 15 shots, 8 of which were on target.
Sassuolo, by contrast, struggled to break Milan’s dominance, managing just four shots and 301 passes.
Samuel Chukwueze before this match had been struggling to regain his form and to also earn a starting position with the Rosseneri.
The 24-year-old winger featured in the team’s 3-0 win against Empoli last weekend, where coach Fonseca hailed and was satisfied with his performance in the games post-conference.
“I was very pleased with the way Chukwueze played this role, who came back into the box twice to play fifth. This module gives us balance.”
Chukwueze will look to work more on this newly awakened goal-scoring form in order to secure a first team shirt before the season runs out.
