Lazio Vs AC Milan [1–0] – Serie A 2025/2026: Maurizio Sarri Wing Play & Pressing – Tactical Analysis

Lazio hosted AC Milan at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome for their 29^th fixture of Serie A 2025/2026, and the game ended with a decisive 1-0 home win.

It is a decisive win mainly because it brings Inter Milan closer to winning the title, since AC Milan did not exploit the latter’s draw to reduce the points difference.

For now, the difference between the two is eight points, with nine games remaining to decide whether Inter Milan will secure their lead or AC Milan will exploit potential Inter Milan losses.

More importantly, AC Milan’s loss against Lazio makes them one point ahead of Napoli, six points away from Como, and seven points away from Juventus.

This puts more pressure on AC Milan to secure a UEFA Champions League spot as well, given that AC Milan should not lose more points going forward; otherwise, they will put themselves at serious risk of losing a top-four spot.

On the other hand, Lazio’s win does not mean much in terms of points, as it keeps the team away from the European spots.

In this tactical analysis, we look at Lazio’s effective reliance on the wings and high pressing, while exploring Milan’s use of defenders’ penetrations and their attacking issues in this match.

Lazio Vs Milan Lineups & Formations

Maurizio Sarri started the match using his preferred 4-3-3 formation, with Edoardo Motta as goalkeeper, Adam Marušić as right-back, Mario Gila and Oliver Provstgaard as centre-backs, and Nuno Tavares as left-back.

The midfield line was made up of Patric, Kenneth Taylor, and Fisayo Dele-Bashiru.

Upfront, the attacking line was composed of Gustav Isaksen and Mattia Zaccagni as wingers, with Daniel Maldini as the team’s main striker.

On the other side, Massimiliano Allegri opted for the usual 3-5-2 formation, with Mike Maignan as goalkeeper, Fikayo Tomori, Koni De Winter, and  Strahinja Pavlović as centre-backs, with Alexis Saelemaekers and Pervis Estupiñán as wing-backs.

The midfield was made up of Luka Modrić as a defensive midfielder, with Ardon Jashari and Youssouf Fofana as central midfielders.

Upfront, the attacking duo was composed of Rafael Leão and Christian Pulisic.

Lazio Vs Milan: Wing Solutions Vs Defenders’ Penetrations & Key Passing Issues

Lazio started the match strongly, with extensive reliance on both wings and an intended exploitation of both Isaksen and Taveres, given their excellent abilities in duels.

In the opening minutes, both players were put in situations that required them to use their dribbling and acceleration, and both beat their direct markers and caused problems for Milan’s defence.

However, Isaksen failed in his final touch, and Tavares was not able to fully escape from his direct marker as the ball was intercepted from him thanks to a sliding tackle from the back.

But Lazio’s solutions were obvious from the start, as both players were dynamic, powerful, and reliable near the touchlines.

Isaksen, in particular, was able to surpass both Estupiñán and Pavlović with ease on more than one occasion thanks to his dribbling skills, but what followed was usually problematic in terms of accurate passing decision-making.

As the match progressed, Lazio attacked in a 4-3-3 formation and defended in a 4-5-1 to limit Milan’s progression from midfield and from both wing-backs.

Lazio Midfield Penetrations & The Needed Intensified Support To Daniel Maldini

Later in the game, Lazio also found a few solutions in the middle thanks to Maldini’s ability to win some of his duels against De Winter, using intelligent interceptions and physical strength to get away with them before passing.

The penetrations of Lazio’s promising new signing, Taylor, towards the final third were also valuable as he was at the receiving end of Maldini’s pass following one of his interceptions, and Taylor still succeeded in being dangerous in a complicated situation.

Taylor received the pass in front of Jashari, and as he dribbled past him, he found himself in front of De Winter and Tomori.

Still, he opted for a powerful shot from a complicated angle and hit the crossbar.

This confirms that Lazio do not have reliable attacking solutions from the wings only, but can also be dangerous if they rely on more support to Maldini.

Midfielders like Taylor and Dele-Bashiru have the quality needed to be very dangerous on Milan’s defence or on any other defence if they join the final third more often, whether through shooting from distance, dribbling penetrations, or key passing.

Lazio Crucial Wing Solutions

In fact, Lazio’s initial impression of their reliance on the wings continued to be tangible as Lazio succeeded in scoring their first goal of the match thanks to a solo work from Isaksen on the right wing.

Isaksen put Estupiñán in trouble on more than one occasion since the start of the match and was relatively slower than the Danish winger in terms of reactions and accelerations, something that favoured Isaksen’s penetrations and allowed the team to rely on this aspect more frequently.

What is worrying for Milan, however, is that Allegri noticed Isaksen’s superiority from the start of the match and did little to address it, other than encouraging Estupiñán, which was not sufficient to prevent a goal.

Instructing Jashari to double the marking on Isaksen strictly would have been a more appropriate solution to limit Lazio’s solutions from this wing.

That said, Isaksen’s first-touch and acceleration skills, as well as his finishing, deserve the credit, as he converted the cross into a goal with remarkable skill and without rushing, putting himself in perfect position to score.

Following this goal, Lazio gained more confidence and began relying more on Milan’s errors, exploiting their high defensive block and slow build-up from the back.

Lazio were close to adding the second goal, mainly thanks to their exploitation of Milan’s high defensive block and thanks to Maldini’s effective pressing on De Winter, as the Italian succeeded in intercepting the ball from De Winter but failed to shoot with the needed power after he put himself in a 1v1 situation against Maignan.

AC Milan Reliance On Strahinja Pavlović Key Penetrations Towards The Box

On the other hand, AC Milan conceded Lazio’s initial high pressing period before starting to build up from the back progressively and reach Lazio’s penalty box through patient playmaking, with the support of Jashari, Modrić, and Pavlović from the left wing.

In fact, Pavlović’s penetrations into the box are becoming even more central to Milan’s attacks, as the team relies on his unexpected timing and tries to use it to their advantage to surprise the opposing defence, thanks to passing combinations that end with a key pass to Pavlović.

In the following action, for instance, AC Milan executed an intelligent combination that must already have been attempted in training, with Pavlović standing just in front of Pulisic, Modrić passing the ball to both players, prompting Pavlović to move forward and let the ball pass to Pulisic.

The latter would then exploit the confusion within Lazio’s defence and pass the ball with a first-time touch towards the direction of Pavlović’s run.

Unfortunately for Milan, Marušić was very attentive to the intended action and followed Pavlović’s run closely, intercepting the pass at a crucial moment.

That said, the timing of Pavlović’s penetrations and the reliance on his physical presence and key movements without the ball inside the box are intelligent and continue to be a solution for Milan in attack, even though it is no longer a surprise.

Milan Increasing Reliance On Penetrations Of Defensive Players

Milan became even more dangerous following the first 10 minutes of the game as they started pressing with more intensity on Lazio’s build-up and obliged them to use a low defensive block in order to resist AC Milan’s high pressing and attacks.

I Rossoneri succeeded in finding players between the lines and progressed through key passing between the lines, with remarkable movements without the ball to provide passing options for the ball holder.

And as soon as they reached the final third, they opted for either passes towards the box or crosses from the wings.

One of the most dangerous opportunities created in this way saw Estupiñán making a very intelligent movement without the ball to escape from Isaksen’s marking and meet Saelemaekers’ accurate cross at the right timing and spot, thanks to using a body feint and putting his body in front of Isaksen after he was waiting for the ball behind him.

Although Estupiñán’s header was not on target, the action further confirms the diversity of AC Milan’s attacking solutions and their increasing reliance on the penetrations of the more defensive players that are least expected to advance to the box and be involved in finishing inside that area.

AC Milan Final Key Passing Errors

AC Milan’s second-half tactical changes were impactful as they switched to a 4-3-3 formation and maintained their high defensive block, while finding more space in Lazio’s final third.

The lack of chemistry between Pulisic and Leão in some of the created situations prevented Milan from scoring the equalising goal early in the second half.

On one such occasion, Leão made the necessary movement behind the last defender, but Pulisic chose a less risky pass.

Providing a key pass in space in that action in particular would have put Leão in a perfect situation for scoring.

Furthermore, AC Milan failed to finish with accuracy on more than one occasion despite creating several shooting opportunities at the edge of the box.

Milan switched the formation once again to 4-2-3-1, in an attempt to become more decisive and dangerous up front by adding Christopher Nkunku behind the main striker, Niclas Füllkrug.

Milan became more dangerous against Lazio in the final part of the match, with crosses from both sides and attempts to exploit set-pieces, mainly corners, given that Lazio retreated and relied mainly on counterattacks and protection of their penalty box.

Despite Milan’s recurrent attempts, Lazio’s strict marking and their goalkeeper’s saves prevented Milan from equalising despite becoming much more dangerous than in the first half.

Conclusion

Lazio won the match thanks to their excellent exploitation of the wings and their effective use of the spaces left to them in those areas, which hurt Milan, as well as benefiting from Milan’s high defensive block through high pressing, especially from Maldini, who was remarkable in this regard.

On the other hand, failing to serve Leão well enough, despite the several intelligent movements he made at the back of the defence, was one of the reasons Milan failed to score, especially before Lazio retreated to defend with ten players.

Milan could have done better in key passing at the back of the defence, as there were inviting movements, but hesitation from some players complicated matters for Milan.

Moreover, failing to score against a defensive Lazio in the final minutes of the match confirms that Milan should find alternative attacking solutions to deal with teams that retreat completely, as Lazio did in the final period.