The San Siro witnessed pulsating action in the UEFA Champions League, as European giants AC Milan traded tackles with Newcastle United.
Newcastle United are making their third appearance in the competition, having previously appeared in the 1997/98 and 2002/03 seasons.
7-time Champions AC Milan participated in the competition last season, and they have resumed efforts this term, with the intention of moving past their semi-final berth in the 2022/23 season.
The Rossoneri saw the encounter’s biggest chance, with Nick Pope making two saves in the space of 120 seconds.
Following a defensive mix-up, the ball made its way to Samuel Chukwueze, but his header was directed to Nick Pope.
In the 14th minute, Olivier Giroud also had a go at Nick Pope in goal for Newcastle United, however, his efforts couldn’t trouble the Englishman.
4 minutes later, the Rossoneri also found another chance, with Samuel Chukwueze seeing a great opportunity on the right side.
However, his cross was blocked and it landed in front of Rafael Leao. Fabian Schar’s mop-up went to the path of Rade Krunic.
Krunic tried his effort from range, and Nick Pope did enough to save his side by punching the ball out of play, with Eddie Howe’s side heaving a sigh of relief.
Quickly, Nick Krunic played the resultant corner, sending a speculative cross into the box.
Theo Hernandez was unmarked in the box, and he nodded the ball down the middle, with Pope also coming in handy to rescue his side.
Sean Longstaff goes down in the box, leading to calls for a possible penalty
Both sides continued to soldier on, and in the 32nd minute, Sean Longstaff went down in the box, with the Newcastle United players gesticulating for a penalty.
However, Spanish referee Jose Sanchez turned a blind eye to it. AC Milan afterward went on the break with Theo Hernandez.
Fabian Schar attempted to quench the break from Stefano Pioli’s side, but he couldn’t stop the run from Hernandez.
The ball afterward found Olivier Giroud, who took an instant shot that went wide of the goalpost.
In the 34th minute, Rafael Leao made a dazzling run through the 18-yard box, and it appeared like he was going to take a shot at Newcastle United’s goal.
However, he tripped, and the ball found went to Tommaso Pobega on the edge of the area, and his well-taken shot was cleared off the goal-line by Jacob Murphy.
In the 40th minute, Davide Calabria picked up the game’s first yellow card, as he was booked for angrily shouting at the referee.
The encounter ended with AC Milan and Newcastle United going into the break-level pegging.
Stefano Pioli made an early chance in the second half, introducing Alessandro Florenzi for Davide Calabria in the 46th minute.
3 minutes later, Fabian Schar fouled Pobega, and referee Sanchez immediately handed him a yellow card, despite him getting the ball.
In the 61st minute, Christian Pulisic came on for Samuel Chukwueze, while Tijani Reijnders was introduced for Tommaso Pobega.
Eddie Howe brought on Callum Wilson for Jacob Murphy, while Miguel Almiron came on for Anthony Gordon in the 63rd minute.
AC Milan wasted several glorious chances
The home continued to amass goal-mouth chances, but they couldn’t convert the opportunity given them.
In the 72nd minute, Yunus Mensah replaced Ruben Loftus-Cheek, while Eddie Howe responded with Elliot Anderson entering the fray for Sandro Tonali.
2 minutes later, AC Milan recorded another opportunity, with substitute Alessandro Florenzi running down the right, before sending a delightful cross into the area.
Rafael Leao connected to the cross, but the Portuguese sent his header over the bar, with their show of profligacy continuing to display its ugly head.
Is Mike Maignan injured?
In the 80th minute, Stefan Pioli had to make a forced substitution, after goalkeeper Mike Maignan went down in Milan’s area due to injury.
2nd choice goalie Marco Sportiello came on to deputize in his stead, as supporters of the Rossoneri hope that Maignan didn’t pick up a major knock.
Yunus Mensah was also brandished a yellow card in the 82nd minute for a foul of Bruno Guimaraes.
Olivier Giroud was also booked for dissent in the 83rd minute, after reacting angrily to a call by the referee.
6 minutes later, Rade Krunic picked up a yellow card for a poor tackle on Elliot Anderson.
Eddie Howe made his last substitution of the encounter, in the first minutes of additional time, sending on Harvey Barnes for Aleksander Isak.
AC Milan had a scare in the 5th minute of additional time, with the game’s last big chance going to Newcastle United.
Following a counter, Anderson squared the ball to Sean Longstaff, who smashed a shot on goal, but his efforts were saved by Sportiello in goal for AC Milan.
A litany of chances were wasted by Stefano Pioli’s side, and they could have rued those opportunities missed, if Newcastle United had converted the big chance they saw late on in the encounter.
Match highlights below:
