AC Milan and Atalanta shared the spoils at San Siro on Sunday night as two goals in the first half resulted in a 1-1 draw after an entertaining contest.
Milan could hardly have made a better start to the game when Rafael Leao fired them into the lead inside the opening three minutes, beating two men on the left side then whipping a shot inside the far corner.
However, Atalanta got themselves level from the penalty spot as Olivier Giroud was penalised after a VAR check for a high boot inside the box which has caused controversy. Teun Koopmeiners converted from 12 yards, getting his third goal of the season against Stefano Pioli’s side.
A goalless second half followed as the teams shared the points, meaning La Dea remain seven points behind in the table. If you think you know which way the next game will go, check out 1xBet registration by phone number.
Below are the best stats from the game…
Domination
Milan came into the game having lost both their previous meetings against Atalanta in the current campaign: 3-2 in the reverse league game and 2-1 in the Coppa Italia last month at San Siro.
The pressure was on to provide an improved performance, and it came. With 69% of the possession, 20 total shots to eight, seven shots on target to three and double the amount of big chances, the Rossoneri really should have won.
Milan also had give corners to three and drew four yellow cards from their opponents, which further highlights how they had them on the ropes without landing that knockout blow.
📊 The stats from the draw against Atalanta pic.twitter.com/DSvJgqJxqB
— MilanData📊 (@acmilandata) February 25, 2024
Milan milestones
There were a couple of achievements ticked off for the left-sided duo on the night as well, starting with Rafael Leao who drew level with Rui Costa in Serie A terms as well as hitting 50 league goals in his career.
.@RafaeLeao7 (42 goals) has equalled Rui Costa as the second-top Portuguese scorer in Serie A history. The #ACMilan forward also reached 50 goals in the 'top five' European leagues.
[via @OptaPaolo] pic.twitter.com/Ov2xRNB0mV
— MilanData📊 (@acmilandata) February 26, 2024
Then, Theo Hernandez made his 200th appearance for the club across all competitions, and the day after the game news has come out about the plans to renew his contract plus a huge price tag amid Bayern Munich links.
👏 @TheoHernandez made his 200th appearance for #ACMilan during the game against Atalantapic.twitter.com/iFwXPLM1QU
— MilanData📊 (@acmilandata) February 26, 2024
Resplendent Rafa
Leao’s numbers from the game make for impressive reading: 4 key passes, 2 big chances created, 6 dribbles, 3/4 long balls completed, 10/14 ground duels won and 4 fouls drawn.
Not only that, but he kept up his trend of scoring against Atalanta who are now his favourite victims in Italy. It was the fourth goal scored by Leao against Atalanta and the second this season after the one in the cup. The other two came in the Scudetto season.
Rafael Leão🏄♂️ vs Atalanta.pic.twitter.com/hKdUsQx1Cl
— 𝙁 (@fuadyabz23) February 26, 2024
Other curiosities
As reported by the Opta website, Milan are now the team against whom Atalanta have drawn the most games in Serie A, with 45 meetings ending all square.
In addition, the penalty called against Giroud for the minimal contact on Holm, then scored by Koopmeiners, thus means that Milan have now had 11 spot kicks given against them this season.
Théo Hernández became the third defender to score at least 20 goals (26) and provide at least 20 assists (20) in the five main European leagues in the last five seasons, after Achraf Hakimi and Raphael Guerreiro.
