The Italians became a victim to a late comeback after a bright start in their second successive Champions League game.
AC Milan were “superior to” Atletico Madrid, says Diego Simeone while admitting his side managed to “get into the game” only after the opponents were reduced to 10 men.
The atmosphere at San Siro was electric right from the start, and Rafael Leao worked it into a frenzy by handing the hosts an early lead in their first Champions League home game in seven years.
Milan were dominant for the better part of the first half but the scales slowly started tipping in Atletico’s favor after Franck Kessie, rather harshly, was given marching orders by referee Cuneyt Cakir.
The Serie A side still tried hard not to sway under pressure, keeping their opponents from taking a shot on target until the 80th minute, but ultimately gave ground to their Spanish opponents, who sealed the win in stoppage-time from a controversial spot-kick.
“Let’s start from the beginning. Milan were superior to us, played a very fast, dynamic style of football, which we already saw them play against Liverpool,” Simeone told Sport Mediaset after the 2-1 win.
“Naturally, after the red card, they started to cede some territory and we started to get into a game that we hadn’t even started.
“After the break, we came out hungry, trying to break through a team that was well-organized. We really needed this victory.”
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