Leverkusen Edge AC Milan 1-0 in Champions League as Pulisic’s Goal Streak Snapped
Hradecky Shuts Down Rossoneri for Seal Narrow Win by Leverkusen
Suffering a 1-0 loss on Tuesday, Christian Pulisic and AC Milan were scoreless in their UEFA Champions League encounter against Bayer Leverkusen, the current Bundesliga champion. Milan had a strong aggressive onslaught, but Leverkusen goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky’s outstanding performance made all the difference—keeping the Rossoneri off the scoreboard and stopping Pulisic’s most recent goal run.
Active all through the game, the USMNT star registered one shot on target and created three different scoring opportunities. But Milan’s chances were frequently dashed by Hradecky, who preserved the clean sheet by making five pivotal saves. Milan made 17 shots overall, but none could hit the back of the net against the in-form Leverkusen defense.
Milan Approach Must-Win Territory in Champions League
Having lost two of their first two group-stage games, AC Milan finds themselves in a vulnerable situation heading into Matchday 3, against Club Brugge. Their Matchday 4 game will see them travel to the Santiago Bernabeu to face Real Madrid and their strong offense, which has Vinicius Junior, Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe, and Rodrygo, raises significant stakes. Milan’s prospects of developing in the tournament could be seriously hampered by anything less than three points in their next game.
Problems for Paulo Fonseca, the new manager
This loss puts more strain on Milan’s new head coach Paulo Fonseca, who succeeded Stefano Pioli during the summer. Fonseca has struggled to achieve regular success domestically and is presently winless in Europe; he simply has three victories out of six in Serie A thus far this season. Fonseca and Milan will have to fast find answers to turn their fortunes around as both domestic and European contests present increasingly difficult problems.
