Cremonese Vs Milan — cremonese vs milan: Pavlovic shoulders scoring burden as Milan sink Cremonese
In a late-turnaround finish, cremonese vs milan ended 2-0 as Strahinja Pavlovic and Rafael Leão struck in the 90th minute and stoppage time to give Milan a narrow away win in Cremona. The goals came after a match in which Milan wasted a series of chances earlier on and needed a VAR review to confirm Pavlovic’s effort came off his shoulder rather than his arm.
Cremona finishing sequence
Strahinja Pavlovic put Milan ahead in the 90th minute following a corner, with a VAR review confirming the ball went in off his shoulder instead of his arm. Rafael Leão added a second goal five minutes into stoppage time with a simple finish to seal a 2-0 victory. The late goals were described as rescuing Milan from a drab display in Cremona after the visitors had wasted numerous earlier chances.
Standings and title picture
Milan are second-placed in the Serie A table. One account in the context places Milan 10 points behind their local rivals Inter, who beat Genoa 2-0 on Saturday, and says the club have little realistic hope of winning the Serie A title. Another account places Milan 13 points behind Inter with 12 rounds remaining. Next weekend’s Milan derby is described as having little more than local pride riding on it, with Inter speeding off into the distance with 11 games remaining in the league campaign.
Cremonese’s crisis and form
Jamie Vardy’s Cremonese are sliding towards relegation after a 13th straight match without a win, leaving them outside the drop zone on goal difference. Davide Nicola’s side are sitting 17th in the standings and are sliding towards the trapdoor, having failed to score in 10 of 12 winless matches and last tasting success in December. Last week’s 3-0 loss to Roma at the Stadio Olimpico allowed Fiorentina to overtake them in a battle between six clubs to avoid the final relegation place, and Nicola’s job is described as being under serious threat. The club won the Serie B playoffs one year ago.
Head-to-head and recent history
Milan had previously lost to Cremonese at the opening matchday in August, when Federico Bonazzoli’s strike sealed a 2-1 win for the promoted side. Milan had been unbeaten on the road and had gone 24 league games without defeat before a 1-0 loss against Parma that ended that run; that Parma winner came in the 80th minute and a VAR check confirmed its validity. At home this season Milan also lost to Parma the previous weekend. One account notes Milan’s only losses this season came against Cremonese in the opener in August and at home against Parma last weekend. Cremonese’s Stadio Zini is mentioned as the venue for this reconvened Lombardy fixture, and the Grigiorossi have failed to score on their last three visits there, with only one visit taking place this century. Becoming the first promoted team to pull a league double over Milan since Ascoli in 1987 is described as a very long shot.
Team news and injuries
Milan face multiple absences and doubts: Ruben Loftus-Cheek suffered a serious facial injury last Sunday and will be out of action for several weeks. It remains unclear in the provided context whether Matteo Gabbia will recover from a flexor issue. Mexico striker Santiago Gimenez is listed as absent. Christian Pulisic and Rafael Leão recently returned to fitness, and Christopher Nkunku and Niclas Fullkrug are mentioned as being in contention for two attacking places alongside those players.
Other European results and incidents
Juventus maintained hopes of reaching next season’s Champions League after a 3-3 draw at Roma, with Federico Gatti lashing in Juve’s leveller in the third minute of stoppage time to give the visitors a point that keeps them four points behind their opponents in fourth. Juve had trailed 3-1 with 12 minutes remaining after goals from Wesley França, Evan Ndicka and Donyell Malen put Roma ahead in front of more than 65, 000 fans, before Jérémie Boga volleyed Juventus back into the game and Gatti pounced on a poorly defended free-kick to snatch a point. Como are three points behind Roma in fifth, with a trip to the lakeside club coming up in two weeks’ time for Gian Piero Gasperini’s men. Sevilla came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Real Betis in a derby; Isaac Romero thumped home from outside the box in the 85th minute to salvage a point at Betis’s temporary La Cartuja home, a result that leaves Manuel Pellegrini’s Betis fifth and eight points behind Atlético Madrid and Villarreal in third and fourth respectively. In the Bundesliga, Jamie Leweling scored twice in the first half and Deniz Undav added another as Stuttgart cruised to a 4-0 home victory over Wolfsburg, with Nikolas Nartey scoring with the final kick of the match. Wolfsburg have won only one of their past 10 games, sit second bottom and are three points from the last safe spot; they have not been relegated since their promotion to the Bundesliga in 1997. Emre Can will miss the remainder of the season after scans confirmed he tore an anterior cruciate ligament in Saturday’s 3-2 home defeat by Bayern Munich. A Spanish second-division match between Sporting Gijón and Leganés was postponed after the death of an 82-year-old supporter in the stands; the game was stopped in the fourth minute at 0-0 so the supporter, reported to have suffered a heart attack, could receive medical attention. In France, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice as Marseille fought back to win 3-2 at home against Lyon; Corentin Tolisso gave Lyon an early lead and the half-time substitute Igor Paixão equalised.
Closing paragraph: Pavlovic’s late intervention and Leão’s stoppage-time finish delivered a 2-0 away win for Milan in Cremona, preserving Milan’s road form while leaving Cremonese still battling a worsening run of results and uncertain prospects in the relegation fight.
