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AC Milan started the new year the same way that they ended 2025: with a very important win and a clean sheet, this time away against Cagliari.
Milan started the game poorly and in truth they could have been at least a couple of goals behind had Cagliari managed to find their shooting boots, but as has often been the case this season it ended up being a game of two halves.
The only goal of the match ended up coming early in the second half, with Rafael Leao setting himself well and firing into the back of the net from Adrien Rabiot’s square ball via a deflection for his seventh goal against the Sardinians.
Just like a few days ago after the Hellas Verona win, Milan have recorded a victory to put the pressure on others in the rest of the round. The Rossoneri go top for the time being, while waiting to see how Inter do against Bologna.
Massimiliano Allegri made three changes to the starting line-up from the team that beat Hellas Verona on December 2028. Pervis Estupinan came in at left wing-back with Davide Bartesaghi shifting to centre-back to replace the flu-stricken Strahinja Pavlovic. Youssouf Fofana went back into midfield, with Rafael Leao reinstated up top.
The first half-chance of the game came inside 30 seconds, and it was via a sloppy giveaway from Estupinan. He hit a first-time clearance straight at Prati from his own byline, though thankfully the midfielder dragged his effort narrowly wide of the far post.
Milan’s slow start to the game continued and again they eyeballs were on Estupinan, this time in the second minute, as a simple ball in behind had him chasing Palestra. Again the low drive was angled just wide.
A third shot came for the home side just after the two-minute mark, with Allegri’s men at sixes and sevens. Prati was the one who fired it this time from about 20 yards out, though he lifted it comfortably over the bar.
It was a very sluggish start from the Rossoneri who continued to be penned into their own half by Cagliari. The hosts had a string of corners inside the opening 15 minutes and while all were relatively threatening, they were ultimately well cleared.
Milan finally managed to create a glimpse of danger in the 18th minute when a ball was lofted into the box and appeared to strike the arm of Zappa, though he couldn’t clear and Loftus-Cheek then shanked a shot from inside the box. Replays showed the Cagliari defender had flicked it onto his own arm, and it wasn’t punished.
After a bit of a lull in proceedings, Maignan was called into action for the first time, making a relatively routine save from Adopo’s header after a pinpoint cross from Esposito on the left side.
The final attempt of the first half fell to Mazzitelli on the right side of Milan’s box. He was found by a dink over the top, and set himself to shoot from a narrow angle, though only found the side netting.
There was to be one more bit of drama though, as the referee pointed to the spot to award Milan a penalty for a foul by Rodriguez on Loftus-Cheek. It was a clear infringement, but Leao had been offside in the build-up.
Milan started the second half on top, and they got themselves in front within five minutes of the restart. A lovely through ball from Fofana found Adrien Rabiot’s dart towards the right byline, and his cut-back went all the way to Leao on the far side, who took a touch and fired a shot into the back of the net via a deflection.
Rather than sit back to try defend the lead, the Diavolo went in search of a second goal. They weren’t far from getting one when Davide Bartesaghi went for an audacious shot from 25 yards directly from a free-kick, forcing Caprile to parry it behind with two hands.
With 25 minutes left on the clock, Allegri made his first change and it was a debut given to Niclas Füllkrug, on the day his signing was made official. He came on to take the place of Leao, while Samuele Ricci replaced Fofana.
With 12 minutes remaining, Allegri made another couple of changes to try and manage the game. Matteo Gabbia and Christian Pulisic were the pair that came on; Loftus-Cheek and Estupinan made way for them, marking a shift back to left wing-back for Bartesaghi.
Füllkrug could have got himself an assist in his first appearance, setting up his strike partner Pulisic for a fierce shot on the left side of the box, but Caprile did well to punch it behind. What was reassuring though was that so much of the game was still being played in Cagliari’s half, with the hosts looking more and more out of steam.
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