AC Milan faced a surprising setback as they were defeated by newly promoted Parma, raising questions about the team’s form and strategy in the ongoing Serie A season.

On Saturday, AC Milan suffered a 2-1 loss against Parma which contributed to their sluggish beginning in Serie A under the guidance of new coach Paulo Fonseca despite being seven-time European champions.

With their newly-promoted status defied, Parma delivered an entertaining match at Stadio Ennio Tardini where Matteo Cancellieri scored the deciding goal with only 13 minutes remaining.

After being loaned to Parma by Lazio, the 22-year-old winger scored his first goal with perfect execution as he met Pontus Almqvist’s low cross. Unfortunately for Lazio, they lost 2-1 against Udinese.

Under the guidance of Portuguese Fonseca, Milan has only managed to secure a single point in their opening two league games. Despite looking likely to win before Christian Pulisic’s 66th-minute equalizer following Dennis Man’s early close-range goal.

Parma posed a significant threat whenever they broke away, but their inaccurate finishing prevented them from pulling ahead in the first half. They easily could have had a commanding lead if not for this issue.

“It is undeniable that the responsibility falls on me, but it appears evident to me that we are facing issues with our defensive strategies and assertiveness,” Fonseca remarked while speaking to DAZN.

Despite attempting to press higher, we still faced difficulties against Torino (in a 2-2 draw) – an issue that was initially caused by our lack of high pressing in the previous match.

“This is where we are, despite having a good pre-season,” was the original statement.

Milan took some time to get going, but after the first thirty minutes they had three attempts at Zion Suzuki in quick succession. However, despite this pressure it was still evident that the home team posed a greater threat.

Four minutes before the halftime whistle, Simon Sohm missed a big opportunity to increase Parma’s lead. The chance was set up by Man who made another impressive run down the right side and cut inside before passing it on to his Swiss teammate.

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Despite being set clear on goal by Ange-Yoan Bonny, Valentin Mihaila failed to score as he took too long with the ball and allowed Fikayo Tomori to close in on him, taking advantage of a gap left open by Milan’s defense.

After the halftime, Milan transformed into a distinct unit and had the opportunity to equalize twice within three minutes. Tijjani Reijnders’ shot hit the crossbar after being deflected while Suzuki made an exceptional save from Pulisic’s low attempt.

In the 62nd minute, a Parma counter-attack resulted in another missed opportunity causing frustration for the man who fell on the turf. His delicate curling strike drifted just wide. Moments later, Pulisic scored and brought Milan level.

With nimble footwork, Rafael Leao made his way down the left side before linking up with Theo Hernandez through a series of passes. The ball was then delivered to USA’s very own Pulisic for an easy score.

Milan exerted pressure, but it was an electrifying Parma counterattack that resulted in Cancellieri netting the decisive goal and basking in the admiration of the euphoric supporters.

Inter Milan, the reigning champions, will be making their first San Siro appearance of the season against Lecce. However, they’ll have to do so without their injured captain and top striker Lautaro Martinez. Monza is set to host Genoa on matchday as well.

Since being released by Porto, Mehdi Taremi has signed as a free agent and is set to make his debut start for Simone Inzaghi’s team.

AFP