October 07, (THEWILL) – In a dramatic finale at the Stadio Comunale Luigi Ferraris, AC Milan secured a 1-0 victory over Genoa, thanks to an 87th-minute strike from Christian Pulisic. The American’s half-volley finally broke the deadlock in a cagey affair, but the real action was still to come.
Moments after the goal, Milan keeper Mike Maignan was shown a straight red card for a reckless challenge, forcing striker Olivier Giroud to take his place between the sticks. The World Cup winner was immediately called into action and somehow kept out a close-range effort to preserve his side’s clean sheet.
Not to be outdone, Genoa’s Josep Martinez also saw red in the dying seconds for taking out Fikayo Tomori at a corner. With all substitutions made, the 10 men faced a nervy end to the match defending set pieces. But stand-in keeper Giroud proved the hero with some courageous stops to secure a vital three points for the visitors.
The result sees Milan move top of Serie A whilst Genoa drop to 15th ahead of the international break. Both sides return on 22 October, with Genoa facing Atalanta and Milan hosting Juventus in a top-of-the-table clash.
After a drab 90 minutes, this fixture truly sprang to life in the final moments with the drama of red cards to the keepers, a striker in goal and a nervy finish for both sides. A match that had 0-0 written all over it until Pulisic’s goal ended up providing late drama enough to keep Milan at the top.
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.
