After a blistering start to the campaign that saw them crowned as the Winter champions, Milan saw their Scudetto hopes slowly fading away following a dip in form that began since the turn of the new year. Although the Rossoneri were never considered to be title favorites in first place, but their 2021 struggles have left their fans disappointed after a promising end to 2020.
So let’s take a look at the five key moments that doomed the club’s title hopes.
Milan 0-3 Atalanta (January 23)
Whilst the Diavolo’s first league defeat of the season came few weeks earlier at the hands of Juventus, this one was much more humbling, as La Dea completely dominated the encounter, and the result could have even been larger.
Spezia 2-0 Milan (February 13)
After the humbling against Atalanta, the newly-promoted Spezia shocked the Calcio world by producing a masterpiece against the leaders.
Following this loss, Milan were never seen in the same light again, and their Scudetto credentials took a major blow.
Milan 0-3 Inter (February 21)
One week later, the confirmation of the club’s struggles came in the most crucial fixture of the season – the Derby della Madonnina.
At a time when the stakes had never been higher, the Rossoneri crumbled, as the Nerazzurri secured their lead at the top of the table and never looked back.
Milan 1-1 Udinese (March 3)
As if it wasn’t obvious enough, Stefano Pioli’s side had became a shade of its former self, and against Udinese the Lombardi club produced what could arguably be its poorest performance of the season so far.
Even though jens Stryger Larsen gifted Franck Kessié a last-minute equalizer from the spot after a comical handball, the writing was on the wall for the Diavolo.
Milan 1-1 Sampdoria (April 3)
Whilst Milan had lost at home to Napoli in the previous weeks, this one felt like the last straw that ended what little was left from the Scudetto hopes.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic and his teammates rarely wasted points in this type of matches earlier in the season, but these days were long gone, and the former European champions were only able to come away with a disappointing draw against Sampdoria’s 10 men.