Allegri's wishful thinking had sounded convincing, but once the match began, he realized something was wrong.
As soon as the whistle blew, Man City launched an all-out attack on AC Milan. AC Milan showed no intention of sitting back either. Instead, they fought attack with attack, adopting a strategy of meeting strength with strength and actively seeking counterattacking opportunities, especially in the middle and front thirds.
The problem soon became apparent.
Man City had an absolute advantage in possession and passing, and they were playing at home. As a result, their players seized control of the ball from the opening whistle. AC Milan could only defend through pressing and closing down—but that was precisely where the problem lay.
Shaarawy and Ibrahimovic were both pushed quite far forward, practically running alongside Man City's back line. Robinho's task was to drop back and cut off Busquets, but the Brazilian forward was not putting in much effort. Whether he was saving his strength for the attack or not, he was extremely passive on defense.
That made it easy for Busquets to find space.
Everyone knew how important the Number Four Position was in Man City's tactical system, especially in their midfield possession-based system.
Once Busquets came alive, Man City's midfield possession basically came alive with him.
Having learned from the first leg, Marcelo and Toni Kroos repeatedly pulled toward the flanks, while David Silva dropped back to escape AC Milan's three-man defensive midfield. Su Dong's position was also highly flexible. He actively dropped back, roaming between the three defensive midfielders and the back line, always ready to receive the ball.
That left AC Milan's entire defense badly split.
There was an obvious defensive vacuum between the three forwards and the three defensive midfielders. In that area, Man City's passing and possession faced very