AC Milan 2-3 Atalanta: Top-Four Hopes Dented As Visitors Clinch Late Win In Serie A

AC Milan’s push for a Serie A top-four finish suffered another setback as Atalanta earned a 3-2 win at San Siro, leaving Milan fourth in the table and ahead of Roma only on head-to-head record after a tense contest that swung between control, collapse and late pressure.

Milan trailed 3-0 deep into the second half before almost snatching a draw in added time, as Strahinja Pavlovic and Christopher Nkunku struck late, yet Atalanta held on, meaning Milan’s poor recent league run continues and the top-four picture tightens further heading towards the final weeks.

The hosts’ revival began on 88 minutes when Strahinja Pavlovic rose to meet Samuele Ricci’s free-kick, directing a clever header back across goal and in, and belief surged again in stoppage time when Nkunku went down under a challenge from Marten de Roon, then stepped up calmly to smash the penalty past Marco Carnesecchi after 94 minutes.

Milan even created a final opening after Nkunku’s spot-kick, as Niklas Fullkrug reached a cross inside the box, only to glance a close-range header wide, and earlier Fullkrug had thought Milan were back in it when sweeping a finish into the net, but that strike was ruled out for offside after a check.

Atalanta had seized control much earlier, striking first in the seventh minute when Adrien Rabiot’s driven effort clipped the outside of the left post for Milan before the visitors broke through, Giacomo Raspadori’s initial effort being blocked, only for Ederson to react quickest and drill the loose ball into the net despite three defenders closing in.

The pressure from Gian Piero Gasperini’s side kept building, with Nikola Krstovic and Nicola Zalewski both drawing saves from Mike Maignan, and that dominance brought a second goal on 29 minutes when Davide Zappacosta escaped his marker on the right, cut inside the box and drove a low shot across Maignan and into the far corner.

AC Milan vs Atalanta: Serie A contest lit up by third goal and host response

Milan finally began to create clear chances before half-time, as Santiago Gimenez, Rafael Leao and Alexis Saelemaekers were all denied by Carnesecchi, yet Atalanta punished Milan again early in the second half, winning the ball high upfield in the 51st minute, with Ederson finding unexpected space and sliding a precise pass for Raspadori to smash in a powerful third.

That goal forced Milan to chase the game even more, and Christopher Nkunku twice went close from promising positions, while Milan continued to test Carnesecchi from range and crosses, but clear openings remained scarce until the frantic finale that produced two late goals and left Milan reflecting on another damaging home defeat in Serie A.

AC Milan vs Atalanta: Serie A numbers highlight clinical visitors

The result extends Milan’s winless streak in Serie A to three matches, with one draw and two defeats, their longest such sequence since a similar three-game run between February and March last year, and they have now gone six league meetings without beating Atalanta, recording two draws and four losses, including back-to-back home defeats against La Dea.

There will be frustration for Massimiliano Allegri, as the hosts generated 1.94 expected goals from 20 attempts, nine on target, helped by Nkunku’s late penalty, yet Atalanta produced only nine shots worth 1.08 expected goals, with five on target, and still scored three times, underlining how their clinical work in both boxes proved decisive in this tight Serie A contest.