AC Milan 3-1 Inter: Diego Moreira stars as Milan win the derby

Diego Moreira scored a free-kick and set up goals for Christian Pulisic and Adrien Rabiot as AC Milan beat Inter 3-1 in the Derby della Madonnina at San Siro on Saturday. All four goals came in the first half, and Inter suffered their first Serie A defeat of the season.

Match facts

• Result: AC Milan 3-1 Inter (half-time 3-1)
• Competition: Serie A Enilive, Matchday 10
• Venue: San Siro (Stadio Giuseppe Meazza), Milan
• Scorers: AC Milan - Pulisic 4', Rabiot 10', Moreira 43'; Inter - Bastoni 22'
• Red cards: None
• Next: Feyenoord v Inter, Champions League, Tuesday 3 November (20:00 UK); AC Milan v Ferencváros, Europa League, Thursday 5 November (17:45 UK); Genoa v AC Milan, Serie A, Sunday 8 November (14:00 UK); Inter v Como, Serie A, Sunday 8 November (17:00 UK)

How the match unfolded

Ruben Amorim's side, beaten 4-2 at home by Bologna in midweek, started at a furious pace after the 19:45 UK kick-off. In the fourth minute Moreira beat Carlos Augusto on the right, reached the byline and crossed for Pulisic, who headed into the bottom corner from close range.

Six minutes later Moreira played a short corner to Rabiot, who had escaped his marker and chipped a first-time finish in off the far post to make it 2-0.

Inter responded from set pieces. Mike Maignan saved a Yann Bisseck header, and in the 22nd minute Manuel Akanji flicked on Hakan Çalhanoğlu's corner for Alessandro Bastoni to head in from close range.

Cristian Chivu's side then had their best spell. Maignan pushed a long-range Çalhanoğlu shot over the bar, held a low effort from Andy Diouf and, just past the half-hour, made a one-handed reflex save to stop Djed Spence's close-range finish from Carlos Augusto's low cross. He also kept out Petar Sučić before the break.

Milan restored their two-goal lead in the 43rd minute. Nicolò Barella fouled Yunus Musah on the edge of the area, and Moreira curled the free-kick over the wall and beyond Josep Martínez.

Inter had more of the ball after the interval but created little. Koni De Winter and Moreira were booked early in the second half, Maignan saved a Marcus Thuram header in the 70th minute, and Chivu sent on Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Piotr Zieliński two minutes later.

Soon afterwards referee Marco Guida awarded Inter a penalty when Mkhitaryan's cross struck Mario Gila, but he reversed the decision after a VAR review. Inter added Francesco Pio Esposito and Ange-Yoan Bonny late on, and Martínez saved a long-range Alphadjo Cisse strike in stoppage time.

What does the derby win mean?

Milan moved up to fourth on 21 points, four behind Inter. Chivu's side stay on 25 points but dropped behind Lazio, who have a game in hand against Cagliari on Sunday. It was Milan's fourth straight derby win, and they are unbeaten in eight meetings with Inter across all competitions.

Inter had arrived as leaders after a 2-0 win at Venezia in midweek, while Milan bounced back from their 2-4 defeat by Bologna. Inter had 19 shots to Milan's seven, but Maignan made seven saves.

"For now, it is my best game in the Milan shirt," Moreira told Sky Sport Italia. Pulisic, who has now scored in four Milan derbies, told the broadcaster: "We started very strong with intensity, physicality, scored two goals and then the third before half-time. This victory is very important for us."

What happens next?

Inter travel to Feyenoord in the Champions League on Tuesday, and Milan host Ferencváros in the Europa League two days later. Both clubs are back in Serie A next Sunday. Inter host Como, and Milan visit Genoa. More results are in our Serie A section.

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