Leao goal earns Milan top spot after win at Cagliari

CAGLIARI, Italy, ‌Jan 2 : AC Milan moved top of the Serie A standings with a 1-0 win away to Cagliari on Friday where Rafael Leao's second-half goal earned the visitors all three points despite a far from impressive performance.

Milan, who extended their unbeaten run in Serie A to 16 ‌games, are on 38 points, two ahead of ‌Inter Milan who host Bologna on Sunday, while Cagliari remain 14th in the standings on 18 points.

Cagliari played with plenty of confidence in the opening half, taking the game to Milan but their only real chance was a glancing header from Michel Adopo ‍which was comfortably saved by Mike Maignan.

Milan, meanwhile, struggled to threaten, relying on counter-attacks and failing to provide quality service to their frontmen, with manager Massimiliano Allegri cutting a frustrated figure on the ​sideline.

The visitors came out ‌on the attack after the break, Ruben Loftus-Cheek heading over before Leao gave Milan the lead five minutes after ​halftime.

Adrien Rabiot played a low pass across the box and Leao had ⁠space and time to control ‌the ball before drilling his shot into the roof of ​the net. The goal took the wind out of Cagliari's sails and they never looked like salvaging a ‍draw.

Allegri, whose first managerial role in Serie A was with Cagliari, ⁠gave Niclas Fullkrug his Milan debut from the bench on the day ​the German forward's loan ‌signing from West Ham United was made official.

(Reporting ‍by ​Trevor StynesEditing by Christian Radnedge)