In the first thirty minutes, there were little opportunities until Georgios Kyriakopoulos gave the visitors a low, deflected shot that went just wide of the far post. At the other end, Patrick Vieira's squad was frustrated in their attempts to find a way to score, seeing a few shots blocked and eventually unable to test the goalie. This is maybe not surprising for a club that had only scored one goal in the first half in their previous seven games.

However, they quickly began to turn the screw, and Stefano Turati twice denied Andrea Pinamonti. Before making an incredible save low to his right from a penalty that was given after Kyriakopoulos manhandled Vasquez to the goal, he initially pushed a soaring header over the bar. The White and Reds subsequently escaped to the interval all square when Fabio Miretti's attempt was deflected just inches over the bar.