AC Milan beat Sassuolo 2-1 at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza in their Sunday afternoon Serie A fixture.
A first half penalty saw Andrea Consigli dismissed and Carlos Bacca converted the spot kick, but despite Domenico Berardi equalising in the second half, substitute Luiz Adriano found a late winner.
After half an hour of little in the way of attacking, the visitors were dealt a stinging blow. Alessio Cerci found Carlos Bacca with a precise pass into the area, but Andrea Consigli brought down the Colombian, resulting in a penalty and a red card for the keeper. Bacca stepped up and dispatched his spot kick past the substitute goalkeeper Gianluca Pegolo.
In the second half, the Rossoneri put their opponents under greater pressure. Bacca retrieved the loose ball from the corner of the box and found Alex on the edge of the area, but the defender’s shot was blocked by Simone Missiroli. The Neroverdi ended the Milan dominance of play by finding an equaliser. A free kick on the edge of the box gave Domenico Berardi the opportunity he’d been waiting for, curling his shot past the 16 year-old debutant Gianluigi Donnarumma in goal; his eighth goal against Milan.
Milan went in desperate search of a winner. A defensive mix-up saw the ball ping around in the area, first with Luiz Adriano having an attempt closed down, and then Andrea Bertolacci saw his shot blocked. Frustration reached boiling point when Luiz Adriano found Luca Antonelli in front of goal, but the left-back inexplicably skewed his shot wide.
The Rossoneri left it late, but did find the winner in Luiz Adriano. A corner was fizzed in by Bonaventura, with the Brazilian waiting at the back post to header beyond Pegolo. The hosts held on to take all three points.
