AC Milan continued their away-day slump in Serie A, settling for a 1-1 draw against Sassuolo at the Mapei Stadium in matchday six, failing to capitalize on their lead and missing the chance to close in on the league summit.
After a cagey, scoreless first half, Adrien Rabiot fired the Rossoneri ahead in the 33rd minute—subsequently corrected contextually to the 63rd minute—after being set up by Luka Modrić. However, the visitors’ joy lasted a mere five minutes as Cas Odenthal restored parity for Sassuolo following a corner kick delivered by Armand Laurienté.
The result carries an ominous historical precedent for manager Rúben Amorim’s side: Milan have drawn three of their opening four away matches this season for the first time since the 1999–2000 campaign under Alberto Zaccheroni, posting the exact same record: one win and three draws.
Zaccheroni’s Milan had entered that season as reigning Serie A champions but failed to defend their crown, ultimately finishing third behind Lazio and Juventus. This statistical parallel serves as an early warning sign for a squad aiming to fight for the Scudetto rather than a mere coincidence.
The Rossoneri have collected just 6 out of a possible 12 points on their travels, having beaten Torino 2-1 before drawing with Juventus (1-1), Lazio (2-2), and Sassuolo (1-1). Ironically, the team has conceded at least one goal in all of their away fixtures while keeping clean sheets in both of their San Siro victories against Venezia (2-0) and Lecce (3-0).
Furthermore, the Mapei Stadium remains a house of horrors for Milan, who have not won there since their historic 3-0 victory in May 2002—corrected contextually to May 2022—when they clinched their 19th league title. Since then, they have returned to the venue three times in Serie A, drawing twice and losing 2-0 last season.
Milan raised their tally to 12 points from 6 matches, recording 3 wins and 3 draws without a single defeat to sit fifth provisionally, four points behind joint leaders Inter and Lazio, having scored 11 goals and conceded 5. Meanwhile, Sassuolo moved onto 8 points to occupy tenth place.
Milan have little time to address their away woes as they travel to face Red Bull Salzburg on Thursday in the UEFA Europa League, before hosting Atalanta on Sunday in the league, followed by consecutive away trips to Bournemouth and Udinese. With three of their next four matches away from the San Siro, their ability to turn draws into wins faces an early and decisive test.
