Kaka nets century for AC Milan
Brazilian boost his chances for World Cup inclusion after scoring a brace in 3-0 win against Atalanta
Brazilian forward Kaka boosted his World Cup hopes by scoring his 100th and 101st goals for AC Milan in a welcome 3-0 win over Atalanta at the San Siro on Monday.
Kaka is one of several Europe-based stars hoping to nail a place in Luiz Felipe Scolari’s squad and did his chances a world of good with two well-taken goals that helped move struggling Milan up three places to 10th.
Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri, who on Sunday confirmed his departure from the club at the end of the season, had labelled the game a relegation dogfight and was relieved after Atalanta rattled the woodwork twice.
“There was only one point between us and we were only five points clear of the bottom three,” said the 46-year-old coach. “Atalanta had a few scoring chances in the second half but overall I don’t think we gave too many chances away. We should have defended better, but Atalanta are a strong side and [goalkeeper] Christian Abbiati did well.”
Mario Balotelli, recovering from flu, started on the bench with Alessandro Matri spearheading the attack in Allegri’s preferred 4-3-2-1 formation, which also featured midfielder Bryan Cristante.
Former Valencia defender Adil Rami also made his debut, while Japan midfielder Keisuke Honda, who arrived in Milan during the festive break, watched the game from the stands alongside club CEO Adriano Galliani.