AC Milan recover from early setback to secure draw against Bologna

AC Milan's chances of finishing in the top four of Serie A took a huge blow as they were held to a 1-1 draw away to Bologna. 

The reigning Serie A champions were stunned early on by their hosts who took the lead after only 33 seconds when Nicola Sansone found the net in the joint-quickest time that any player has scored against AC Milan this century.  

Bologna were off to the races in record time against Milan, scoring after only 11 passes and 33 seconds, as Nicola Sansone scored from Stefan Posch’s cross to equal Gregoire Defrel’s record for the fastest goal scored against the Rossoneri since the 2004/05 season. 

After the goal, Milan gained control of the game and peppered the Bologna with shots, firing nine shots in the opening half, more than the hosts managed in the entire game. 

They eventually got the equaliser with the last shot of the first half as midfielder Tommaso Pobega hammered home from distance to pull Milan level after 40 minutes. 

Milan continued their dominance into the second half, but were unable to find a winner, despite taking 10 more shots in the second period. 

Bologna did well to fend off the Milan threat as they kept the Rossoneri to low-quality efforts in the second half and kept them down to only one shot on target out of 10 as the visitors’ frustration visibly grew as the game wore on. 

Eventually, the game crawled to a 1-1 draw despite Milan’s best efforts, as their hopes for a place in the UEFA Champions League next season took a serious blow. 

The draw against Bologna left Milan on 53 points after 30 games, giving cross-town neighbours Inter the chance to leapfrog them into fourth place on the log and the last spot for UCL qualification. 

It also leaves the possibility of Atalanta creeping up from sixth place and kicking Milan into the UEFA Europa Conference League next season.