AC Milan vs Lazio Review
Lazio climbed back into the top four of Serie A with a close 2-1 win over 10-man AC Milan at the San Siro, thanks to a dramatic last-minute penalty from Pedro. Both teams were eager to enhance their chances for European competition. In the early stages of the match, Lazio posed the greater threat, with Mike Maignan having to stay sharp to deny Boulaye Dia within the first three minutes. Lazio’s striker then missed a header, and Gustav Isaken shot wide as the visitors made their intentions clear.
A last-minute challenge from Yunus Munah prevented Dia from having another shot at Maignan when they were one-on-one, although replays were unclear about whether he actually made contact. After that attempt, Milan finally came to life as Tijjani Reijnders forced a save from Ivan Provedel. However, Lazio quickly regained control, and shortly after Maignan stopped a shot from Isaksen. A fast break led to Adam Marušić, and although Milan’s goalkeeper managed to touch the shot, it deflected into the path of Mattia Zaccagni, who scored easily.
After the break, Samuel Gigot had a shot saved by Maignan, while João Félix shot over the bar at the other end. Milan began to apply consistent pressure on Lazio’s goal, but their chances of equalizing took a serious hit when Strahinja Pavlović received a straight red card for fouling Isaksen as he was heading towards goal. That decision initially deflated the Rossoneri, and although they kept pushing for an equalizer, Provedel was largely uninvolved.
However, after several attacking substitutions, Chukwueze managed to score with an assist from Rafael Leão. With newfound momentum, Milan sought a second goal, but it was Lazio who delivered the decisive blow with nearly the last kick of the match. When Maignan brought down Isaksen in the box, referee Gianluca Mangianello had no choice but to award a penalty after reviewing the incident on the pitch side monitor, and Pedro converted it confidently from 12 yards.
This dramatic finish allowed Lazio to move ahead of Juventus into fourth place, setting the stage for an exciting competition between the two teams for a Champions League spot. On the other hand, Milan will be heartbroken to lose in such a manner, now finding themselves nine points behind the Rome-based team, marking their first defeat in their last nine Serie A home matches. They have also suffered three consecutive league losses for the first time since February 2023, increasing the pressure on manager Sergio Conceição.
