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AC Milan needed just three minutes in the second half to score the two goals that fired them to an opening day win against Torino. La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) begin their analysis by remarking that few things are more deceptive than the opening day of the season. However, it already feels fair to say Milan have embarked on a different path defined by ‘proactive play and an aggressive mindset’. Read SempreMilan ad-free and get access to exclusive news. Click here for a free trial! Last season, under Massimiliano Allegri, the team adopted a ‘wait-and-see’ strategy, biding its time and waiting for the right opportunity to striker in games. Last night in Turin, under Ruben Amorim, they made the opposite choice. Rather than hoping the opponent would provide an opening to strike, they created the conditions to do so themselves, building the play and deservedly securing the three points. Scoring the two decisive goals required bringing on the big guns, though the lead had probably been warranted before. However, with a 2-0 lead, Milan sat back too deep. In the final 20 minutes, Torino – shedding all fear and driven by an unstoppable Njie (who had inexplicably not started) – came closer to an equaliser than one might have expected. Dropping the intensity too early is the only criticism to level at Amorim, yet the overall direction seems right. Milan must play like Milan: asserting themselves rather than tailoring their game to the opposition. The hope is that yesterday’s performance was not merely a flash in the pan. A different Milan The teams were similar in their intentions and formations, yet the phase of one-on-one battles was short-lived, lasting only about ten minutes. That was all the time Abate needed to realise the risks Toro would face if they engaged in the head-to-head duels dictated by their mirrored 3-4-2-1 systems. After a scare caused by a counter-attack that ended with a shot wide by Alphadjo Cissé, Toro dropped back into a more defensive 5-4-1, with Vlašić and Casadei lining up alongside Gineitis and Fitz-Jim. Milan took control of the game, but Toro’s strategic retreat neutralised the match’s intensity. In the first 45 minutes, Mascardi was called upon to make just one great save, denying a shot from Samuel Chukwueze. The Rossoneri’s right winger relentlessly attacked Toro’s left flank, where Cacciamani struggled to contain him and was unable to launch counter-attacks of his own. Milan lacked a cutting edge in front of goal during the first half. Gonçalo Ramos frequently dropped deep to orchestrate play, acting as an attacking playmaker. His seasons at PSG under Luis Enrique instilled in him a taste for movement and intricate passing. That is important under Amorim’s system, but it also means that he needs to rediscover his instincts as an out-and-out centre-forward. As a club-record signing, it is important that he scores frequently. Rabiot takes charge After the break, Toro tried to shake off their fears and gain some momentum. It was a fleeting impression for Amorim to make a change: Ardon Jashari and Ruben Loftus-Cheek were off, Luka Modric and Adrien Rabiot came on. Modric radiated personality, while Rabiot was involved the two goals. First he provided the assist – a cross from the right – for Cissè’s beautiful right-footed shot. Then, he was in the right place at the right time in front of goal to volley in Chukwueze’s cross. All that came in the space of three minutes, a deadly one-two punch. Goals arrived on the development of actions that said something about Amorim’s football: vertical movement of the ball, widening, breaking through. At 2-0, Toro came to play. With nothing left to lose, Abate turned the team around with substitutions and Njie’s addition changed everything. The young Swede was the protagonist of multiple dangerous actions. He forced Maignan to deflect one of his shots onto the post, and he sent in a wonderful ball from the left that the unfortunate Aboukhlal put wide. The Granata closed the gap at the end of injury time, with a lovely goal by Adams following a free kick from Gineitis, but it was not enough. It seems like Amorim is modelling Milan with an idea of proactive football. He won’t win the title playing like that, but he can give the Rossoneri a soul again.