Milan Hold Off Atalanta Fightback in 3-2 San Siro Thriller

AC Milan survived a late Atalanta fightback to win a five-goal thriller 3-2 at San Siro on Sunday, as Adrien Rabiot scored one goal and set up another to keep Ruben Amorim unbeaten in Serie A and lift the Rossoneri up to fourth place.

Milan looked to be cruising. Goncalo Ramos put them ahead from the penalty spot on 24 minutes, Rabiot doubled the lead just before half-time, and Mario Gila headed a third on 57 minutes to make it 3-0. Then the game flipped. Gianluca Gaetano pulled one back on 66 minutes and Nikola Krstovic swept home a second with nine minutes left, and only a late Mike Maignan save from Davide Zappacosta stopped Atalanta completing one of the comebacks of the season, as SuperSport reported.

Ramos and Rabiot take control

The hosts started on the front foot and thought they had scored on 13 minutes, only for Christian Pulisic to see a close-range finish ruled out for a marginal offside. Atalanta nearly punished them at once, Krstovic rounding Maignan before firing into the side-netting. Milan made that escape count. Yunus Musah had a shot blocked by the hand of substitute Relja Obric, the debutant sent on for the injured Sead Kolasinac, and Ramos sent goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi the wrong way from the spot. Two minutes before the break Diego Moreira picked out Rabiot, who cut inside a defender and stroked a composed finish into the bottom corner for 2-0.

Three up, then a San Siro scare

Nigeria winger Samuel Chukwueze curled narrowly wide as Milan chased a third after the restart, and it duly arrived in chaotic fashion. Ramos won a second penalty on 56 minutes, for a handball by Thomas Kristensen, only for Carnesecchi to save his spot-kick. From the resulting corner, Rabiot flicked on and Gila headed in at the back post. Game over, it seemed. Instead, Gaetano showed neat control inside the six-yard box to steer past Maignan on 66 minutes, and when Raoul Bellanova cut the ball back on 81 minutes Krstovic swept it into the bottom corner. Zappacosta then forced Maignan into a save that preserved the points, and Milan held on through stoppage time for a first league win in this fixture in seven meetings, with Rabiot named Flashscore man of the match.

So what does it mean?

Milan climb to fourth on 15 points, four behind leaders Inter, and Amorim remains unbeaten through his first seven league games — a run built, in part, on momentum from the 4-0 Europa League win at Salzburg on Thursday. The warning sign is just as clear: a side with title ambitions cannot switch off at 3-0 at home. There is no time to dwell on it. Milan travel on Thursday to a Bournemouth side who have already impressed in the Europa League this season, while Atalanta, beaten for the fourth time in the league and stuck on nine points under Maurizio Sarri, go to Ajax in the Conference League still searching for a defence that can match their fight going forward.

Beyond the Final Whistle verdict: This was Milan in miniature under Amorim — brilliant for an hour, careless for half an hour, and rescued in the end by the two players who had built the lead. Rabiot is becoming the heartbeat of this team, Ramos keeps delivering in the big moments, and an unbeaten start is nothing to dismiss. But champions do not need a goalkeeper's late save to protect a 3-0 home lead. Milan have the attack to challenge Inter; whether they have the concentration is now the question. Are Milan genuine title contenders, or will these lapses cost them? Tell us in the comments.