February 26, (THEWILL) – With a 1-1 draw with Udinese on Friday, AC Milan tripped up for the second time in as many weeks, giving their Serie A title rivals, Inter Milan and Napoli, a chance to catch them at the top of the league table.
Rafael Leao netted his eighth league goal of the season in the 29th minute, and Milan appeared to have secured top place for at least another round of fixtures.
However, some mayhem in the Milan box midway through the second half, saw Destiny Udogie deservedly equalise for Udinese, allowing them to escape with a point and move four points clear of the relegation zone.
Milan, who drew with bottom-placed Salernitana last week, struggled in a windy San Siro and could scarcely complain about the outcome against a 14th-placed team that has only won once since the turn of the year.
Only Leao’s 29th-minute opening, which came after the Portugal international wonderfully picked down Sandro Tonali’s clipped ball, held off Rodrigo Becao before rolling in a cool finish, livened up an otherwise dull first half.
Udinese reacted angrily to what they perceived to be a foul by Leao on Becao, with Beto hitting a good chance straight at Mike Maignan before the whistle to end the first half saw both sides go into the interval with Milan on top by a slim margin.
The away side came out more determined than ever to get something out of the fixture after the break, and Tolgay Arslan was unlucky to have seen his low strike slip just past the post on the hour mark.
Udogie then scored the equaliser for Udinese by pushing in Roberto Pereyra’s bicycle kick, which was awarded following a VAR check for handball.
With a win against Genoa later on Friday, Inter Milan can join their local rivals on 57 points, as can Napoli from a win in their match at Lazio on Sunday. Inter has a game in hand over these other two title contenders and that might count in their favour in the defence of their title.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
