Milan –
AC Milan was held to a 2-2 draw by Bologna at home in the continuation of Serie A this season. Coach Stefano Pioli regretted the Rossoneri’s failure to lock in victory, especially with the two wasted penalties.
Playing at the San Siro, Sunday (28/1/2024) early morning WIB, Bologna took the lead in the 29th minute through Joshua Zirkzee’s shot, before Ruben Loftus-Cheek equalized in the 45th minute after completing Davide Calabria’s crossing.
The English midfielder’s header in the 83rd minute then gave Milan a 2-1 lead, before Riccardo Orsolini’s penalty in second half injury time changed the score to 2-2 and ended the hosts’ victory.
The duel between the two teams was relatively even, with Milan recording 14 attempts and Bologna firing 15 shots. Each had four shots on target, and the Rossoneri only had 51 percent possession of the ball.
However, Milan wasted two penalties through Olivier Giroud in the 42nd minute and Theo Hernandez in the 74th minute. The first attempt was caught by goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski, while the second hit the post and was snatched back for a goal, but Hernandez was already offside, so it was disallowed.
“We went home with regret because we didn’t win this match,” Pioli told Sky Sport Italia after the match.
“It’s true there were two missed penalties, we had lots of chances and let Bologna go too, but we were still able to take the lead and are ready to take the three points home.”
“We can’t let concentration and intensity drop in defense at the end of the match, like when we were awarded a penalty. It’s a shame because we fought hard and also had the quality to create all those chances.”
“Considering what happened and in order to maintain a positive trend, this should be an important victory,” explained Pioli.
This draw meant that Milan failed to close the gap with Juventus, who were previously held to a 1-1 draw by Empoli. The Rossoneri are now in third place with 46 points from 22 matches, seven points adrift of Juventus at the top. Between the two, there is Inter Milan who has 51 points from 20 matches.
(adp/pur)
