Real Madrid vs AC Milan: Rose Bowl friendly (3-2)

Fans at the Rose Bowl came to see a host of stars take the field in a friendly preseason between Real Madrid and AC Milan on Sunday evening, but two in particular were on display, and both delivered.

Real Madrid and AC Milan kick off the US summer friendlies with an exhibition on Sunday (10:10 pm ET) at what will be a packed Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, CA. The game, a part of the 2023 Soccer Champions Tour, will be Real Madrid's first pre-season friendly ahead of the 2023-24 season.

Madrid would walk away with a 3-2 victory on a late Vinicius Jr winner, turning around a 2-0 halftime deficit, but he was just an exclamation point on a fabulous 90 minutes oozing with storylines. Fikayo Tomori and Luka Romero were the Milan goal scorers in the first half, while Federico Valverde's quick-fire brace brought Madrid back level before the hour mark.

Both teams are coming off of slightly disappointing seasons, with Real Madrid failing to beat Barcelona to the La Liga title and then losing out to Man City in the race for the Champions League trophy. AC Milan had to witness Napoli lift the trophy in Serie A.

The match will be a good opportunity for both teams to test their new signings and get their squad ready for a potential comeback campaign. Madrid will look to begin their pre-season on a strong note whereas Milan will look to build on their 6-0 win against Lumezzane.

Starting lineups:

Real Madrid (4-4-2,): Lunin (GK) — L. Vazquez, Militao (Alaba, 46'), N. Fernandez (Rudiger, 46'), Mendy (F. Garcia, 46') — F. Valverde, Bellingham (Paz, 63'), Camavinga (Tchouameni, 46'), Kroos (Modric, 46') — B. Dia z (Rodrygo, 46'), Joselu (Vinicius Jr, 46').

AC Milan (4-3-3,): Sportiello (GK — Maignan, 70') — Calabria (Saelemaekers, 70'), Simic (Kjaer, 70'), Tomori (Thiaw, 70'), Florenzi (T. Hernandez, 70') — Krunic (Reijnders, 70'), Loftus-Cheek (Adli, 70' ), Pobega (De Ketalere, 70') — Messias (Romero, 32'), Colombo (Giroud, 70'), Pulisic (Leao, 70').

Overall, both sides put on a show for fans, and the stars showed up. Christian Pulisic and Jude Bellingham were bright spots for their new clubs, and Vinicius Jr is a world-class player, as we already knew. An enjoyable 90 minutes!

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Sarah H

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