After being decisive in almost every game Milan have played so far this season, this time Christian Pulisic proved decisive in a negative way. The American missed a penalty last night against Juventus, denying the Rossoneri not only three points but also the chance to return to the top of the table alongside Napoli and Roma. An unexpected mistake for everyone except Massimiliano Allegri.
PULISIC AND ALLEGRI
As reported this morning by La Gazzetta dello Sport, yesterday the Milan coach chose not to watch the American’s penalty and kept his back turned. Hearing the Juventus fans celebrating, the Italian coach immediately asked his assistant Landucci: “Did he shoot it flat? How? I told him not to do that.” Allegri then quickly applauded the former Chelsea player and hugged him when he was substituted for Nkunku a few minutes later. This was the second penalty missed by the American in a Milan shirt, with the curious detail that the first was also missed in Turin, a city that does not seem favorable for him in this respect (last season against Torino, saved by Milinkovic-Savic).
For Milan, penalties continue to be a major problem, as this striking statistic shows:
since the start of 2024, the Rossoneri have missed seven of the 13 penalties taken in Serie A (54%). That is the worst record in Europe’s top five leagues over the period. Another bad figure: five misses in their last seven attempts in Serie A. Despite what happened yesterday, Pulisic will remain Milan’s designated penalty taker, as Allegri confirmed after the match: “Pulisic is the penalty taker, one missed penalty doesn’t change that.”
