Milan secures a hard-fought victory against Como: trailing at halftime, the Rossoneri turn it around in the second half. It ends 2-1 at San Siro.
Milan - Como, First Half
Conceiçao makes two changes compared to the starting eleven that began in Lecce: Maignan returns in goal after his suspension, and Leao replaces Jimenez in the attacking trio behind Gimenez. In midfield, it's Bondo-Musah, with Fofana still on the bench. Fabregas responds with a highly offensive 4-2-3-1, featuring a trio of Diao, Nico Paz, and Strefezza behind former Milan striker Patrick Cutrone.
Milan starts strong and immediately gets a huge chance to take the lead after just three minutes: a brilliant move by the Rossoneri sees Theo Hernandez set up Musah one-on-one with Butez; the American rounds the goalkeeper but, with an open goal, astonishingly shoots wide. Como responds ten minutes later, as Nico Paz receives the ball on the edge of the box, but his left-footed shot lacks power and drifts wide.
The match is played with an open approach, with both teams looking capable of causing damage. Just past the half-hour mark, Como gets a great opportunity: a through ball from Diao finds Nico Paz, who fires at Maignan, but the French goalkeeper reacts superbly, rushing out at the right moment to deny the former Real Madrid player. Como's lead, however, is only delayed by a minute: after an exchange between Diao and Nico Paz, the ball is laid off for Da Cunha, who places a precise left-footed shot into the bottom corner, where Maignan has no chance of reaching it.
Milan is stunned, unable to react, and three minutes before halftime, the visitors nearly double their lead. Kempf controls a cross from Caqueret inside the box and shoots at Maignan, but the French goalkeeper makes the save. After one minute of added time, the teams head into the break with Milan deservedly trailing and facing whistles from the San Siro crowd.
Milan - Como, the second half
Three substitutions are made at the start of the second half: for Como, Dossena replaces Kempf, while for Milan, Conceiçao takes off Theo Hernandez and Bondo (who had been booked) and brings on Jimenez and Fofana.
Four minutes in, Como seems to double their lead with Da Cunha scoring his second goal after a quick counterattack, but VAR disallows it for a marginal offside by the French-Portuguese winger. Moments later, Conceiçao substitutes Musah, who had just received a yellow card (he was one booking away from suspension and will miss the Napoli match), replacing him with Joao Felix, as pointed out by Milan Press.
Returning to speak about Milan, in classic football fashion, from a potential 0-2, Milan quickly equalizes at 1-1: a brilliant through ball from Reijnders finds Christian Pulisic, who, from a tight angle, unleashes a stunning left-footed shot that curls into the far post.
Como reacts immediately, creating two chances within three minutes, both from the edge of the area: first, Nico Paz forces a save from Maignan, and then Da Cunha sees his shot parried away by the Milan goalkeeper.
In the 68th minute, an ineffective Gimenez is replaced by Abraham. Soon after, Milan comes within inches of taking the lead: a quick counterattack sees Pulisic lay it off for the onrushing Reijnders, who strikes first-time toward the far post, grazing the top of the crossbar. Two minutes later, Cutrone controls at the edge of the area and volleys it, but his shot is off target. He then exits the field to applause from San Siro, replaced by Douvikas.
At the half-hour mark, Milan completes the comeback: an illuminating through ball from Abraham finds Tijjani Reijnders, who times his run perfectly and places a precise shot between the post and the onrushing Butez.
In the 78th minute, Loftus-Cheek returns to the pitch after more than two months out due to a muscle injury suffered in the Italian Super Cup final against Inter. Leao makes way for him. However, an even bigger surprise comes in the 81st minute when Dele Alli enters the match, replacing Da Cunha. The English midfielder’s last official appearance was on February 26, 2023, with Besiktas.
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Five minutes from the end, Milan gets a golden chance to seal the match: once again, Abraham provides a great assist for Reijnders, who, this time in front of Butez, volleys his left-footed shot just wide.
At the 90th minute, referee Marchetti is called to the VAR for a horrific foul by Dele Alli on Loftus-Cheek, initially punished with only a yellow card. However, after reviewing the footage, the inevitable red card is shown to the former Tottenham player, whose return to action after more than two years lasts only ten minutes.
The referee grants six minutes of stoppage time, but Milan, despite their numerical advantage, allows Como to push them back into their own half instead of keeping possession and running down the clock.
In the end, for no apparent reason, the stoppage time extends to eight minutes. Still, Milan hangs on by the skin of their teeth to secure yet another comeback victory.
