Milan is getting worse the more they play.

Milan had to wait until the 90th minute to score against Cremonese, the team that defeated them right at the season's opening match. Scoring late is gradually becoming a habit, or more accurately, a disease, for this team.

Since the start of 2026, Milan has become a weak team, gradually losing themselves in the Scudetto race against their neighbors Inter. With the decline in form of Christian Pulisic, who was previously one of Serie A's top performers, Milan's attacking and finishing efficiency has noticeably dropped. In total, across 11 matches played since January 1st (all in Serie A), Milan has scored only 16 goals, and notably, 7 of those were scored after the 85th minute. Milan scored in 10 of those matches, with 6 matches seeing their decisive goal coming only after the 85th minute, and 2 others only after the 60th minute. Milan has been largely harmless in the first halves of matches, a stark contrast to their early-season form.

On the pitch against Cremonese, it was the same Milan. It's not that they didn't create scoring chances, but both Rafael Leao and Christian Pulisic, who are still among the league's most efficient scorers on a minutes-per-goal basis, failed to convert from clear-cut opportunities created by Youssouf Fofana. In the second half, chances continued to be created, but Leao and then Niclas Fullkrug wasted them again.

This could easily have been another goalless, frustrating match for Milan, similar to the 0-1 defeat against Parma in the previous round, but center-back Strahinja Pavlovic rescued them with a shoulder-flick into the net in the 90th minute, following a cross from veteran Luka Modric (Pavlovic was also the sole scorer for Milan in the 1-2 away loss to Cremonese earlier in the season). Leao's goal to seal the 2-0 win in the 94th minute was more of a "bonus gift" as the entire Cremonese team had pushed forward seeking an equalizer, rather than a result of Milan's excellence.

Statistics show Milan created as many as 7 big chances, nearly as many as their previous three matches combined (8), but only scored twice. Fortunately for Leao and his teammates, Cremonese's attacking prowess was also very poor (15 shots with only 3 on target). Against a sharper opponent, this could easily have been another dropped point, or even a defeat, for the Rossoneri.

This victory allows Milan to maintain a 10-point gap behind Inter, salvaging a little bit of intrigue for the upcoming city derby against Inter. However, their current bland attacking form is hardly enough to boost their confidence.