MILAN: A stoppage-time header from Rafael Leao rescued AC Milan a 1-1 draw against Genoa at the San Siro on Thursday, extending the host’s unbeaten run in Serie A after the visitor missed a late penalty.
Milan, which had gone 16 league games without defeat since losing on the opening day of the season, looked set to see that run end when loanee Lorenzo Colombo put Genoa ahead in the 28th minute against his parent club. Ruslan Malinovskyi threaded a perfectly weighted pass into the box, allowing Colombo to get in front of Matteo Gabbia and poke home from close range.
“For me it’s impossible to celebrate against Milan, against the team I grew up in,” Colombo told DAZN. “It’s too important a part of my life.”
Milan had started brightly, with Gabbia going close early on from a corner before Genoa goalkeeper Nicola Leali tipped his header onto the crossbar. That proved to be the home side’s only real threat before falling behind. Leali then denied Leao at close range, while Youssouf Fofana slipped as he attempted to head in the rebound.
The host pushed after the break and thought it had equalised just before the hour, but a VAR review ruled out Gabbia’s header for a Christian Pulisic handball in the build-up. Leali continued to frustrate Milan, producing a fine save from a late Pulisic volley.
Leao finally broke Genoa’s resistance in stoppage time, heading in from a corner to level the scores. There was still time for more drama when Davide Bartesaghi fouled Mikael Ellertsson deep into added time and Genoa was awarded a penalty. Substitute Nicolae Stanciu, however, blazed his spot kick over the bar to spare Milan a late defeat.
“What we need to improve is having patience against a team in real difficulty, so we don’t expose ourselves to a counterattack like the one where we risked losing the match,” Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri said after the game.
The draw did little for either side. Milan remains second on 39 points, three behind leader Inter, which beat Parma 2-0 on Wednesday, while Genoa stays 17th on 16 points, three clear of the relegation zone. Agencies
Also Read: EPL: Arsenal play goalless draw against Liverpool