Inter Milan held AC Milan to a draw in the Milan derby forcing the latter to miss the chance to go top of the Serie A table.
Milan was looking to make a statement of intent by moving 10 points clear of the defending champions Inter Milan.
But, they were held to a 1-1 draw in a fiercely contested derby match against Inter. Hence, the side missed the chance to take the outright lead of the Serie A. Consequently, the side has a number of players out on injury and Theo Hernandez suspended. Despite the situation, it got off to the worst possible start as Franck Kessie tangled with Calhanoglu to concede a penalty.
In the 11 th minute, former Milan player Hakan Calhanoglu fired the spot kick straight down the middle. He then ran to the nearby corner to celebrate heartily in front of the club he left on June on a free transfer. After getting loudly jeered by fans, the midfielder placed his hands up to his ears.
Inter’s lead lasted for only six minutes before defender Stefan de Vrij headed Sandro Tonali’s free kick into his own net bringing Milan to level. Fikayo Tomori celebrated as if he had scored and the stadium announcer gave out the player’s name. But, it was eventually awarded as an own goal.
Afterwards, in the 27 th minute, Inter were awarded a second penalty after a bad mistake from Fode Ballo Toure who brought down Matteo Darmian. This time, Lautaro Martinez stepped up but Ciprian Tatarusanu managed to save his spot-kick.
Ballo Toure made up for his mistake in the final minute of the half time clearing off the line from an unmarked Nicolo Barella.
Inter had better chances in the first half and so it continued after the break although Ibrahimovic nearly won the match for Milan. The 40-year-old Swede had done little all game before curling the ball just past the top far corner. He also had a fierce free kick parried by Samir Handanovic.
Stefano Pioli’s side remained level on points at the top of Serie A with Napoli which drew 1-1 against Verona earlier. On the other hand, Inter was third, seven points below the top two.