Coppa Italia: Milan crushes Lecce 3-0 and advances to the round of 16.

Milan, September 23, 2025 – Mission accomplished for AC Milan, who dispatched Lecce with a resounding 3-0 victory and reached the Coppa Italia round of 16 after eliminating Cagliari and Udinese this afternoon, beating Frosinone and Palermo 4-1 and 2-1 respectively. Lazio will face the Rossoneri in the round of 16, and the Rossoneri have only had positive results from this evening: Landucci's men put in yet another dominant performance, pressing hard from the start and creating a slew of scoring opportunities through Rabiot and Gimenez, who then broke the deadlock in the 21st minute following a Bartesaghi cross . Down to ten men after Siebert's red card in the 16th minute, Lecce were immediately on the ropes, at the mercy of the Rossoneri, who continued to play with ease without taking any risks and actually came close to doubling their lead with Nkunku and Rabiot hitting the uprights and chances created at the end of the half by Loftus-Cheek and Pavlovic. This pattern remained unchanged in the second half, with Milan sealing the victory with the first Rossoneri goal from Nkunku (a beautiful scissor kick in the 51st minute) and Pulisic's one, before coming close to securing a fourth with two more goals hitting the post.

Allegri and Di Francesco's choices

Confirming the pre-match rumors about slight rotation by Coach Massimiliano Allegri—who was again replaced by assistant Landucci due to suspension—the Rossoneri are sticking with their 3-5-2 formation : Mike Maignan returns between the posts, protected by a defensive trio that includes De Winter for the first time, flanked by Tomori and Pavlovic. There are also changes on the left, with Estupinan joining the team, while the confirmed Saelemaekers is on the right flank. In midfield, Modric is getting a rest, replaced by Ricci, who forms a trio with Loftus-Cheek and Rabiot. Up front, the unused pairing of Nkunku, starting for the first time, and Gimenez. Di Francesco's Lecce also have some new additions – deployed in a 4-3-3 – starting with goalkeeper Fruchtl , who faces a defensive quartet of Veiga, Tiago Gabriel, Siebert, and Ndaba. The midfield of Helgason, Drame, and Berisha is also new. Finally, up front, the attacking trident of Tete Morente, former AC Milan player Camarda, and N'Dri.

Rossoneri dominate: Gimenez breaks the deadlock in the 20th minute

The Rossoneri got off to a determined start, creating their first chances after less than two minutes. Finding Gimenez in deep, he found himself one-on-one with Fruchtl and overshot the ball. Loftus-Cheek, however, responded to the Giallorossi goalkeeper's rebound, firing in with a confident effort but was blocked on the goal line by Siebert. Gimenez's desire to break the deadlock was overwhelming, and the Mexican attempted another in the fourth minute, heading just over from a Nkunku cross. An even more tempting opportunity fell to him, however, as he was positioned at the near post following a Bartesaghi cross in the ninth minute, but the ball again went wide. Gimenez then tried to play the finishing role in the ninth minute, spotting Rabiot's run on the left and passing him to him. The Frenchman fired a powerful shot, but was met with great opposition from Frucht. Following a corner, Rabiot himself crossed for Nkunku, who struck a confident shot at the far post, leaving the ball almost unguarded, but it clipped the upright. The Rossoneri mounted a veritable siege, orchestrated with a vertical movement of the ball to seek out the midfielders' runs, and in the 16th minute, things got even more complicated for Lecce: Nkunku ran past Siebert, who brought him down. Referee Tremolada first showed the Lecce defender a yellow card, but then – called to VAR – changed his mind and sent him off . The numerical superiority made things even easier for Milan, who saw their uninterrupted push rewarded in the 21st minute: Gimenez pounced on yet another Bartesaghi cross, effectively dragging the ball over the goal line, breaking his curse . With his team a goal and a man down, Di Francesco removed N'Dri to bring on Gaspar. The essence of the match, however, remained unchanged, as the Rossoneri remained a monologue, hitting the crossbar in the 30th minute with Rabiot's sliding tackle following a Saelemaekers cross from the right . Lecce were increasingly on the ropes, pinned down in their own half and unable to make any contact with the Rossoneri (75% possession in the first 45 minutes for Milan). The Rossoneri continued their quest for a second goal, coming close on a couple more occasions before halftime, first with a diagonal shot from Loftus-Cheek and then with a vicious free kick from Pavlovic, which Fruchtl tipped over the bar.

Nkunku and Pulisic close the deal

After halftime, Landucci replaced the already booked Ricci with Fofana, but the match pattern remained unchanged, with Milan dominating and coming close to doubling their lead in the 47th minute when Loftus-Cheek, at the end of a fine move, danced in the box and unleashed a right-footed shot that hit the post. Just a minute later, Nkunku had a golden opportunity, fed by substitute Fofana, who ran into the box and fired over from a good position. The former Chelsea player's first Rossoneri goal was just around the corner, arriving in the 51st minute when the Rossoneri number 18 collected yet another cross from Saelemaekers from the right and placed the ball past Fruchtl with a beautiful scissor kick . Having secured their second goal, Landucci's men weren't satisfied and went in search of a third, coming close with dangerous shots from Saelemaekers and Rabiot. Pulisic found the spot, coming on in the 61st minute alongside debutant Athekame (Nkunku and Saelemaekers came off), and just three minutes later, he capitalized on a cross from the right flank by Fofana, slipping past an opponent and beating Fruchtl with a flat-footed shot . It wasn't until the 71st minute that Salento's first shot on target was seen: a powerful free kick from the edge of the area by Berisha, which Maignan tipped out for a corner. A flash in the dark that didn't cause the slightest concern for Milan, who in the 75th minute, aided by a deflection off a Giallorossi defender, hit the woodwork for the fourth time of the night before switching to automatic pilot, also giving space to Odogu (2006).

The Scoreboard:

Milan (3-5-2): Maignan; Tomori, De Winter, Pavlovic (from 79' Odogu); Saelemaekers (from 61' Athekame), Loftus-Cheek, Ricci (from 45' Fofana), Rabiot, Bartesaghi; Gimenez (from 68' Balentien), Nkunku (from 61' Pulisic). All. Allegri.

Lecce (4-3-3): Fruchtl; Veiga, Tiago Gabriel, Siebert, Ndaba; Helgason (Gallo from 58'), Kaba (Pierotti from 58'), Berisha (Berisha from 80'); Morente (Gorter from 58'), Camarda, N'Dri (Gaspar from 22'). Coach: Di Francesco.

Scorers: Gimenez (Milan 20'), Nkunku (Milan 51'), Pulisic (64')

Notes – Yellow cards: Ricci (Milan), Kaba (Lecce), Pavlovic (Milan). Red cards: Siebert (Lecce)

MATTEO AIROLDI