Milan edge past Lecce for first win under Allegri

LECCE,Italy: AC Milan bounced back from their opening-day defeat with a hard-fought 2-0 victory away at Lecce in Serie A on Friday, though concerns remain over their lack of fluency in attack.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek broke the deadlock with a close-range header after half an hour, while substitute Christian Pulisic sealed the points in the second half, capitalizing on a defensive lapse to calmly slot past Wladimiro Falcone.

Milan, beaten 2-1 at home by newly promoted Cremonese last weekend, arrived under pressure and looked set for another frustrating night when Matteo Gabbia’s early header was disallowed by VAR. With attacking options limited due to summer departures and Rafael Leao’s injury, manager Massimiliano Allegri deployed Alexis Saelemaekers as a makeshift forward alongside Santiago Gimenez, but chances were scarce.

Lecce rarely threatened, managing no shots on target before the break, but nearly punished Milan after the restart. Instead, it was Pulisic’s sharp finish from a long clearance that killed the contest.

Despite securing three points, Allegri appeared visibly frustrated, storming down the tunnel at full time. After last season’s eighth-place finish left Milan out of Europe, the returning coach knows the road back to the top will demand far more than grinding out narrow wins.