The immediate Italian reaction after Newcastle United came away from the San Siro with a 0-0 draw was that the Magpies had done their job well.
Most of the player ratings in the Italian newspapers were positive, especially for the defenders. It was felt that they’d done a job, and both the Magpies and AC Milan came out of the match with something positive.
For the Rossoneri it was seen as something of a reset following their 5-1 battering by local rivals Inter Milan, and for Newcastle such a result in the first game of their Champions League group was also positive.
However, that level and rational reaction soon started to change. Milan’s Rafael Leao came in for increased criticism despite being named the match’s MVP by UEFA.
Paolo Di Canto is now a prominent pundit in Italian football and he’s joined the chorus of criticism sent towards the Magpies.
Milan News quote the former West Ham player as saying: “In the Champions League we saw that Milan deserved the victory. Only one team played, they tried to build and propose a game. Newcastle did almost nothing, they just tried to take away the draw and in the end they did it with a bit of luck.”
Perhaps this is an example of the increased expectations around Eddie Howe’s side. Sunday’s 8-0 victory over Sheffield United will do little to calm them.
