AC Milan Survive Late Atalanta Fightback in 3-2 San Siro Thriller
AC Milan secured a narrow 3-2 Serie A victory over Atalanta at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on October 18, 2026, withstanding a dramatic late surge from the visitors. The encounter swung on a tactical shift by Atalanta, whose second-half substitutions nearly overturned a three-goal deficit.
How Milan Built a Three-Goal Cushion Before Atalanta’s Tactical Pivot
The Rossoneri controlled the opening hour through fluid positional spacing and exploited defensive vulnerabilities in the Atalanta backline. Goncalo Ramos opened the scoring, followed by goals from Adrien Rabiot and Mario Gila, even as Marco Carnesecchi parried an initial penalty attempt from Ramos. Atalanta struggled to match Milan’s midfield press early on, compounded by an early injury to Sead Kolasinac that forced a senior debut for Relja Obric.
AC Milan
clubThe complexion of the match shifted entirely when Gianluca Gaetano entered the pitch from the bench. Gaetano converted a goal and subsequently created the attacking sequence for Nikola Krstovic to reduce the deficit to 3-2. A late save by Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan against Davide Zappacosta ultimately preserved the three points for the hosts.
Disciplinary flashpoints dominated the post-match discourse, centered around Adrien Rabiot avoiding a red card. Match official Daniele Chiffi cautioned the Milan midfielder rather than issuing a dismissal following verbal dissent, an incident that immediately preceded Rabiot’s goal.
Adrien Rabiot
playerRefereeing decisions drew heavy scrutiny throughout the fixture, with Atalanta seeing penalty appeals rejected for a potential Koni De Winter handball while Milan were awarded two spot-kicks for handling offences. Maurizio Sarri voiced sharp criticism toward Daniele Chiffi during his post-match interview with Sky Sport Italia regarding the disciplinary leniency shown on the pitch.
“Today I discovered there are players who can tell referees to go themselves. I pointed this out to the referee, and he said that the player was booked. If I say that, I get sent off, quite rightly.”