Matteo Gabbia Delivers Late Winner in Milan Derby

Matteo Gabbia scored a dramatic late winner for AC Milan, sealing a 2-1 victory over fierce rivals Inter in the Milan derby and easing the pressure on manager Paulo Fonseca. The center-back’s bullet header in the 89th minute found the back of the net, marking Milan’s first win in the derby after six consecutive defeats. Christian Pulisic opened the scoring for Milan early in the match.

He capitalized on a mistake by Henrikh Mkhitaryan to slot the ball past Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer. Inter responded with a goal from wing-back Federico Dimarco, who became the first Milan-born player to score in the derby since Paolo Maldini in 1994. Milan was awarded a penalty in the second half after a handball by Inter captain Lautaro Martinez but the decision was overturned by VAR revealing the ball had struck Martinez’s shoulder.

As both teams pushed for a decisive goal, Milan seemed to have missed their best opportunity when Tammy Abraham fired wide with just Sommer to beat. However, Matteo Gabbia rose to the occasion connecting with Tijjani Reijnders’ free-kick to secure the win at San Siro which both clubs share. The loss marked Inter’s first home defeat in the league in a year and prevented them from moving to the top of the table.

Milan’s win brought them level with Inter on points, both teams now sitting on eight points after five matches. Fonseca had faced significant pressure following a slow start to the season compounded by a recent Champions League loss to Liverpool. This impressive derby victory has alleviated some of that pressure lifting Milan to seventh in the standings just behind Inter on goal difference.