AC Milan earned a place in the Champions League knockout stages after a 1-1 draw at 10-man FC Zurich.
Leonardo's men fail to inspire, but get the job done
Seven-time kings of Europe AC Milan earned a place in the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League despite being held to a 1-1 draw at 10-man FC Zurich in Group C.
The Swiss side, who were already eliminated from the competition, threatened to repeat their victory at the San Siro on matchday two after the aptly named Milan Gajic scored a stunning first-half free-kick.
But Ronaldinho converted a second-half penalty after Alain Rochat had been sent off which, combined with Real Madrid's win at Marseille, was enough to guarantee the Italians second place in the group.
The first half was a relatively uninspiring affair, with Milan struggling to find any rhythm after having their best moment in the opening minutes when Pato had a volley saved by Johnny Leoni.
It was Zurich, already condemned to bottom spot in the group, concluding their European involvement for 2009/10, who were playing as if a place in the knockout stages was on offer.
Rotten evening
Gajic was proving far too energetic for the sluggish Massimo Ambrosini and Andrea Pirlo, and rightfully it was the Zurich midfielder who opened the scoring in the 29th minute with a superb free-kick.
Having run beyond Ambrosini, Gajic was awarded a generous set-piece 30 yards from goal following a slight tug on his shirt and the 23-year-old responded by smashing past Dida as the Milan goalkeeper incorrectly attempted to second-guess the flight.
The pattern continued after half-time and Ambrosini's rotten evening came to an end shortly before the hour mark as manager Leonardo, who had lost Thiago Silva through injury in the first half, introduced former Arsenal man Mathieu Flamini.
Milan, though, got the break they barely deserved in the 64th minute when Marco Borriello was felled by Rochat inside the Zurich 18-yard area, earning the left-back a red card and the visitors a penalty, which Ronaldinho calmly dispatched.
A host of substitutions disrupted the end of the match as both sides appeared content with the share of the spoils and so it remained as referee Pedro Proenca brought proceedings to a close after three minutes of injury time.
| FC Zürich |
Team Statistics |
Milan |
| 1 |
Goals |
1 |
| 1 |
1st Half Goals |
0 |
| 3 |
Shots on Target |
3 |
| 5 |
Shots off Target |
9 |
| 2 |
Blocked Shots |
1 |
| 2 |
Corners |
4 |
| 20 |
Fouls |
10 |
| 1 |
Offsides |
7 |
| 1 |
Yellow Cards |
2 |
| 1 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 81.5 |
Passing Success |
85.9 |
| 28 |
Tackles |
16 |
| 71.4 |
Tackles Success |
93.8 |
| 40.6 |
Possession |
59.4 |
| 48.4 |
Territorial Advantage |
51.6 |
|
