October 22, (THEWILL) – AC Milan returned to winning form in the UEFA Champions League with a convincing 3-1 victory against Club Brugge at the San Siro. Netherlands international, Tijjani Reijnders, delivered two exceptional goals in the second half, marking Milan’s first points in the revamped 2024 competition.
Christian Pulisic initiated the scoring directly from a corner in the 34th minute, though Brugge responded through Kyriani Sabbe after the interval. The Belgian side faced additional challenges when Nigerian defensive midfielder Raphael Onyedika received a straight red card for a mistimed challenge on Reijnders before halftime.
The match featured a notable moment when 16-year-old Francesco Camarda thought he had written his name into UCL history with an impressive header, only for the goal to be disallowed for offside. The result holds particular significance for Milan, who face Real Madrid in their next European fixture.
The atmosphere at San Siro remained subdued throughout the match, with attendance dropping to 58,649 – significantly below the usual 70,000 capacity. This reduction stemmed from supporter protests regarding ticket prices, with the most affordable seats for upcoming domestic matches starting at €100 and reaching €479.
The Italian club’s major supporters association, AIMC, issued a statement regarding the pricing strategy: “We are not cows to be milked, we are not just here to fill the stadium for the lesser matches, we are not just here to fill the club museum or San Siro’s car parks with 120 coaches every time we play at home.”
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
