AC Milan nearly threw away a 3-0 lead against Atalanta before holding on for a 3-2 Serie A win at San Siro on October 18. The Rossoneri looked comfortable after goals from Goncalo Ramos, Adrien Rabiot, and Mario Gila built a commanding advantage, but a late Atalanta fightback left players frustrated.
Ramos opened the scoring with a penalty, and Rabiot doubled the lead before Gila scored his first Serie A goal since 2024, heading in a Rabiot flick from a corner. Milan even had a second penalty from Ramos saved by Atalanta’s goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi. Yet, the visitors clawed back two goals in the closing stages through Gianluca Gaetano and Nikola Krstovic, forcing desperate saves from Mike Maignan to preserve the win.
After the match, Rabiot admitted the team lost control following a strong opening. “We did very well in the first half, then strangely we lost control of the game,” he told Sky Sport Italia. “It is a problem, because we had done so well, but if we don’t keep that up, then it’s not worth anything. Fortunately, we were able to get the victory, but I’m not so sure we deserve it. I feel quite angry, we cannot suddenly stop after playing that well and we need more from those who come off the bench.”
Gila echoed those concerns, pointing to impatience in the latter stages. “We had dominated for 65 minutes, but then we tried to move the ball around too hastily, we lacked patience and lost control of the match,” he said. “It’s a pity, because the first half was perhaps our best performance of the season.”
The game followed Milan’s dominant 4-0 win against RB Salzburg in the Europa League, where teenage striker Alphadjo Cisse scored a hat-trick. However, Cisse did not feature in the starting lineup against Atalanta. Milan’s defence again looked vulnerable, with the late Atalanta goals highlighting persistent issues at the back despite the victory.
Milan remain unbeaten in Serie A this season but face questions over maintaining concentration and defensive solidity throughout matches. Coach Ruben Amorim will hope his side learns from this experience after nearly squandering a three-goal cushion at home. “You need to win these games, even when you’re not in great shape and don’t do that well,” Gila added. “We’ve got to learn from this experience.”
According to Yahoo Sports.
