AC Milan 3-0 Lecce - Rossoneri ease to win to bolster second-place push
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Updated 06/04/2024 at 15:30 GMT
Stefano Pioli’s AC Milan reinforced their position in second place in the Serie A table with victory over Lecce on Saturday. AC’s city rivals Inter Milan are widely felt to have gone beyond recall in terms of the title race, but The Rossoneri are keeping them honest and were much too good for Lecce at the San Siro. Pioli’s side are on 68 points from 31 games.
Rafael Leao, attaccante del Milan
Image credit: Getty Images
AC Milan may not quite be in a title race, but they are the form team of Serie A. Milan’s comfortable 3-0 win over Lecce was their fifth in a row in the league and their seventh consecutive victory in all competitions.
A fast start, with goals in the opening 20 minutes from Christian Pulisic and Olivier Giroud, allowed Milan to cruise through the game and keep one eye on their upcoming UEFA Europa League quarter-final against Roma.
Milan blew a 2-0 lead in the return fixture in November, with Lecce coming back to draw 2-2, but any hopes of a repeat were dashed when Nikola Krstovic was given a straight red card on the stroke of half-time for a high challenge on Samuel Chukwueze.
The second half was a largely low-key affair, though there was a degree of controversy when Rafael Leao scored Milan’s third despite Pontus Almqvist being down with a potential head injury.
Milan’s victory moves them nine points clear of third-place Juventus, who host Fiorentina on Sunday. They are still 11 points behind leaders Inter Milan, who are closing in on another title, and it will take a miracle for Milan to win the league. Staying top of the form table - and continuing their winning run in the Europa League - is the best they can do.
Talking Point – Should Leao’s goal have stood?
Milan’s third goal led to a VAR check – at the other end of the field. Pontus Almqvist had gone down in the Milan area after a very strong shoulder charge from Theo Hernandez. The referee waved played on, not noticing that Hernandez had accidentally run into Almqvist’s head while collecting the loose ball, and Milan broke away to score.
Although Hernandez’s challenge probably wasn’t strong enough to warrant a penalty, the fact Almqvist had a potential head injury meant play should not have been allowed to continue. But VAR cannot intervene in such situations, which meant the goal was allowed to stand – a decision that was both incorrect (by the laws of the game) and correct (by VAR protocol).
Player of the Match – Samuel Chukwueze (Milan)
From the moment he made Christian Pulisic’s early goal, Chukwueze’s electricity powered Milan in attack. His direct running and dribbling skill gave the Lecce left-back Antonino Gallo a constant problem, and he was involved in a number of Milan chances. His defensive diligence inadvertently led to Nikola Krstovic being sent off, while a lovely reverse pass almost created a fourth goal for the substitute Luka Jovic.
Player Ratings
Milan: Maignan 7; Calabria 7, Gabbia 6, Tomori 7, Hernandez 8; Adli 8, Reijnders 7; Chukwueze 8, Pulisic 7, Leao 7; Giroud 7. Subs: Musah 6, Jovic 7, Kjaer 6, Terracciano 6, Bennacer 6.
Lecce: Falcone 7; Venuti 6, Pongracic 6, Baschirotto 6, Gallo 6; Blin 6, Ramadani 6, Gonzalez 7, Dorgu 5, Krstrovic 5, Banda 6. Subs: Almqvist 7, Piccoli 6, Pierotti 6, Gendrey 7, Berisha 6.
Match Highlights
6’ – GOAL! AC Milan 1-0 Lecce (Pulisic) Milan take the lead with their first proper attack. Chukwueze zig-zagged into the area from the right and pushed the ball back to Pulisic on the edge of the D. He shifted the ball onto his left foot and crunched a fine shot that flashed past the diving Falcone.
20’ – GOAL! AC Milan 2-0 Lecce (Giroud) Olivier Giroud, who was sent off at Lecce in the return game, has doubled Milan's lead. Yacine Adli's corner from the left was met at the near post by Giroud, who flicked a header across goal and into the far corner. Simple.
29’ – GONZALEZ HITS THE BAR! Lecce aren't out of this game. Ramadani makes progress in the inside-right channel and curls a fine cross towards Gonzalez, who pulls away from Adli and powers a header towards goal from about 12 yards. It beats the leaping Maignan and hits the top of the crossbar.
45’ – KRSTOVIC SENT OFF! He looks bemused by the decision but he'll have to go. It was a flying kick from Krstovic, who was trying to control a long cross on the edge of the area. He didn't see Chukwueze on his blind side and planted his studs into Chukwueze's side. It was completely unintentional - but it was also dangerous and it's not going to be overturned.
57’ – GOAL! AC Milan 3-0 Lecce (Leao) And it's goodnight from Lecce. Moments after Lecce had a penalty appeal turned down following a robust challenge by Theo Hernandez on Almqvist, Rafa Leao put Milan 3-0 up. He ran onto a long, straight pass from Adli, had too much pace for Venuti and finished calmly past Falcone with his left foot.
82’ – OFF THE LINE BY GENDREY! Jovic makes a good run into the area, onto Chukwueze's clever reverse pass, and has a shot blocked by the outrushing Falcone. The ball loops up and Jovic stretches a leg around Pongracic to poke it towards goal, but Gendrey is on the line to clear.
Key Stats
Lecce have scored only two goals in their last eight games.
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