Sampdoria spent the last thirty minutes of their match at the San Siro searching around for the clock, desperate to run off the pitch and hide in the locker rooms. Although AC Milan lost their first-choice goalkeeper, Christian Abbiati, to injury in the 18th minute, and then saw Alexandre Pato hobble off with a hamstring injury in the 39th, the visitors were unable to capitalize on any weakness by the league leaders. Sampdoria barely threatened Marco Amelia in goal (in fact, he probably had as much of a workout as he normally gets on the bench) whereas Antonio Cassano, who replaced Pato, was undeniably the man of the second half. Clarence Seedorf opened the scoring in the 20th minute, with a Cassano penalty and a Robinho header completing the 3-0 Milan victory. That puts the rossoneri six points clear at the top of the table, while Parma's win over Inter Milan pushes Sampdoria down to 17th, and possibly into the relegation zone come Sunday.
AC Milan Vs. Sampdoria: Goals By Seedorf, Cassano, And Robinho Give Milan Comprehensive 3-0 Victory
Right from the start, it was apparent that there would be no miraculous Sampdoria victory in Milan. Nearly every rossoneri shirt was packed into the box, taking shot after shot at Gianluca Curci’s goal. Samp must have felt a bit heartened, however, when their first spell of pressure resulted in Abbiati leaving the match, apparently with an injured hand. Unfortunately for the visitors, Seedorf scored just two minutes later, his bending free kick landing in the far corner of the net.
If Pato’s injury caused any nerves in the Milan camp, they were quickly dispelled by the performance of substitute Cassano. Despite being exhausted from new-fatherhood, the former Sampdoria forward dominated the second half. After a Massimo Volta handball inside the area, it was Cassano who stepped up to take the penalty, sending his powerful shot over Curci’s head and into the back of the net.
But Curci was destined to have Cassano haunt his nightmares, with the substitute also creating the third goal for Milan. Seedorf played Cassano inside, allowing him the chance to chip the ball over the head of two defenders. Curci came rushing out in an attempt to stem the bleeding, but instead just ripped off the bandage as the ball bounced past, allowing Robinho to head it into the empty net.
