AC Milan fired themselves top of their Champions League group for the time being as they beat Dinamo Zagreb 3-1 at San Siro on Wednesday evening.
Milan found it quite difficult to break the deadlock as they were met with a resolute deep block from the away side, but they did take the lead from the penalty spot when Olivier Giroud converted after Rafael Leao had been fouled.
Early in the second half a header from Alexis Saelemaekers doubled the advantage and the game looked to already be well in control, but danger man Orsic got his 11th goal of the season to halve the deficit for Dinamo.
The game was put to bed late on and it came through a memorable moment as Tommaso Pobega fired home from inside the box, and the result moves Milan top of Group E while waiting for the result between Chelsea and Red Bull Salzburg.
Stefano Pioli decided to make four changes to the team that triumphed against Sampdoria on Saturday as Fikayo Tomori, Ismael Bennacer, Alexis Saelemaekers and Brahim Diaz all regained their spots in the side.
Milan were dominant in the opening exchanges of the game as they had the lion’s share of possession and look for openings in the Dinamo defence. The first chance came in the sixth minute as a first time cross from Alexis Saelemaekers on the half volley met the head of Sandro Tonali who couldn’t keep his effort down.
The next attempt came from Olivier Giroud as the veteran striker fought hard to win the ball back just outside the edge of the box, firing with his left foot but curling it over the bar.
The match very quickly settled into a pattern whereby Milan tried to play through the away side with passing combinations and a mixture of crosses, and then Dinamo would recover the ball and try counter at speed.
There was a big chance to make it 1-0 for the Rossoneri in the 20th minute when Brahim Diaz did fantastically to win the ball back near the touchline and fire a long ball over the top for Rafael Leao, who took the ball down in his stride and was bearing down on goal but a wonderful challenge by Moharrami denied him.
Ismael Bennacer drew a reaction stop from Livakovic moments later with a shot from just over 20 yards out that swerved late and forced him to parry frantically to his left.
The away side provided a reminder of the threat that they can pose on the counter as the ball was spread over to the right wing-back Moharrami, who cut back in onto his left foot drifting past Theo Hernandez and forcing a save from Maignan.
Milan had three chances around the half hour mark that were squandered. The first saw Giroud head straight into the goalkeeper’s hands from a Theo cross, the second was a shot well over from Brahim when he should have done better and the third was Leao missing from a narrow angle after a pinpoint cross found him on the volley.
The danger man for Dinamo heading into the game was undoubtedly Orsic who already has 10 goals this season, and he curled just wide of the far post in the 35th minute much to the relief of the outstretched Maignan.
In the closing stages of the first half, Milan were given the chance to take the lead from the spot as a clumsy challenge from Sutalo saw him take out Leao just as he was receiving the ball. Just as he did on Saturday, Giroud took on the responsibility, and it was the same outcome as he buried it bottom right.
Less than two minutes into the second half, Milan doubled their lead with a quite simply brilliant team move. Some great hold up play and interchange involving Giroud and Brahim Diaz saw Leao fed down the left, and his pinpoint cross met the run across goal by Saelemaekers who headed home from close range with aplomb.
The two-goal lead would not last for long though as Dinamo Zagreb halved the deficit in the 55th minute. A nice exchange in the penalty area between Orsic and Petkovic saw the former receive a pass deep inside the box and finish past Maignan, while the entirety of Milan’s defence caught flat-footed.
A double change came for Milan bang on the midway point of the second half as Giroud and Tonali made way for Charles De Ketelaere and Tommaso Pobega.
As the game moved inside the final 15 minutes, Milan re-established their two-goal lead in what was an incredible moment for Pobega. A lovely passing move saw the ball worked down the left flank to Theo, who cut the ball back into the path of the midfielder and he smacked it home first time in off the crossbar.
A triple substitution followed to inject some fresh legs with the aim of closing the game out as Sergino Dest, Rade Krunic and Junior Messias came on for Bennacer, Brahim Diaz and Saelemaekers.
