Zlatan Ibrahimovic's milestone stoppage-time strike salvaged a 1-1 draw for Serie A leaders Milan at Udinese on Saturday.
Milan's miserable week looked set to take another turn for the worse after Beto gave Udinese a first-half lead at Dacia Arena, four days after the Rossoneri were knocked out of the Champions League by Liverpool.
Advertisement
But Ibrahimovic rescued a point with an acrobatic volley in time added on, taking his goal tally to 300 in Europe's top five leagues.
Isaac Success was then shown a red card for violent conduct as Udinese had to settle for a point in their first game under interim head coach Gabriele Cioffi, who stepped in when Luca Gotti was sacked this week.
Injury time Ibra to avoid defeat
— AC Milan (@acmilan) December 11, 2021
Il gol di Ibra vale il pareggio alla Dacia Arena #UdineseMilan #SempreMilan@Acqua_Lete pic.twitter.com/h97IjDQki8
The table-toppers were given an early warning when Gerard Deulofeu was denied by Mike Maignan and the same man bent a right-footed shot just wide of the far post before Ibrahimovic blazed over the crossbar at the other end.
Udinese were deservedly in front 17 minutes in, when Beto capitalised on Tiemoue Bakayoko's mistake by racing clear and finishing from close range at the second attempt after Maignan kept his initial effort out.
Milan finally warmed to the task, with Brahim Diaz rifling wide of the near post and Theo Hernandez having a goal ruled out for offside late in the first half.
Stefano Pioli made a triple-change at the break, and Ibrahimovic had a chance to level right at the start of the second half when he fired over the bar with his right foot, while Diaz blazed wildly wide after bursting into the box.
Veteran striker Ibrahimovic headed off target as the Rossoneri's frustration mounted, before Beto wasted a chance to seal victory when he shot just wide.
That proved to be costly, as Ibrahimovic levelled with a spectacular close-range finish after Udinese failed to deal with a ball in from the right, and there was still time for Success to be given his marching orders after sparking a melee by clashing with Maignan.
