AC Milan’s quest to climb the Serie A standings faced another setback on Saturday as they were held to a 1-1 draw at home by relegation-threatened Cagliari.
The match marked Sérgio Conceição’s league debut as Milan’s head coach.
Cagliari delivered a shocking equalizer in the 55th minute when defender Nadir Zortea capitalized on a counter-attack, just four minutes after Álvaro Morata had put Milan ahead with a close-range finish.
Conceição, who took charge on December 30 following Paulo Fonseca’s dismissal, enjoyed an immediate impact earlier in the week by guiding Milan to victory in the Italian Super Cup against Inter.
Remarkably, he became the fastest manager since 1929-30 to claim a trophy with the club, achieving the feat in just two games.
However, transforming their league form will take more time, as Milan have now secured only one win in their last five Serie A outings.
Currently eighth in the standings with 28 points, Milan trail fourth-placed Lazio by eight points but hold two games in hand, offering hope of a potential resurgence.
Despite dominating the game, Milan’s profligacy in front of goal proved costly.
Tijjani Reijnders had an early opportunity to put the hosts ahead, but his low shot was thwarted by Cagliari goalkeeper Elia Caprile in the 20th minute.
At the other end, Mike Maignan kept out Mattia Felici’s looping effort from the edge of the box just before halftime.
The second half saw Milan intensify their attack. Christian Pulisic struck the crossbar with a long-range effort, and Morata hit the side netting before finally opening the scoring in the 51st minute.
Theo Hernández delivered a stunning diagonal pass to Pulisic, whose shot was deflected onto the post by Caprile, allowing Morata to pounce on the rebound and slot it home.
Cagliari struck back almost immediately. Zortea leveled the game with a precise low strike from outside the box, marking his fourth goal of the season—a tally that ties him for the most goals by a defender in Europe’s top five leagues this campaign.
Milan remained dominant, with Pulisic denied by Caprile after the hour mark.
Hernández then narrowly missed the target with a powerful shot. Caprile continued his heroics, making crucial saves against Tammy Abraham and Hernández, including a superb stop from the Frenchman’s free kick deep in stoppage time.
Cagliari, who ended a five-game losing streak across all competitions last weekend with a 2-1 victory over bottom-placed Monza, now sit 18th in the table with 18 points.
