Staff Reporter.
Olivier Giroud scored twice as AC Milan came from behind to beat Inter Milan and move to within a point of their rivals at the top of Serie A.
Ivan Perisic side-footed a volley into the bottom corner from Hakan Calhanoglu’s corner and defending champions Inter looked in control.
But Giroud slid in a loose ball after Brahim Diaz’s shot was deflected.
The ex-Arsenal man, 35, then sealed the win with a brilliant turn and finish from Davide Calabria’s pass.
AC Milan had Theo Hernandez sent off in the final seconds for a lunging tackle on Denzel Dumfries.
The win puts them within a point of Inter, who still top the table, and three points above third-placed Napoli.
AC Milan’s last major trophy was the 2010-11 Serie A title. Stefano Pioli is their eighth manager since then.
“I was a bit frustrated in the first half, like the whole team, because we didn’t play well and we knew that,” Giroud told DAZN. “After the break we showed a great team spirit. We are back!
“The road is still long. We are in the race, but there are a lot of games left to play and Inter remain on top.”
It was only the second defeat of the season for Simone Inzaghi’s side, but they remain top on 53 points, one ahead of their city rivals with a game in hand.
“It’s normal to be disappointed, we all know how important the derby is,” Inzaghi said. “We lost undeservedly, but that is football. We need to analyse it calmly and see where we were lacking, because objectively speaking, we gave away practically nothing up to the first goal.”
Inter came into the game as favourites, as their imperious league form contrasted with a Milan side that drew with Juventus and lost to Spezia in its last two games.