Milan edge Inter in derby to keep distant title chase alive

AC Milan claimed a vital 1-0 ​home victory over city rivals Inter Milan on Sunday with Pervis Estupinan's late first-half strike ‌offering a glimmer of hope in the Serie A title race.

Inter are top with 67 points and a seven-point gap over Milan. But Milan's hard-fought win at the San Siro stadium has sparked hope for their fans as the season enters its final ​phase with 10 games left for each team.

The clash - known as the "Derby della Madonnina" after a ​statue of the Virgin Mary on top of Milan Cathedral - has been contested since 1909.

Inter ⁠were short of attacking options as Marcus Thuram missed the match with flu, while captain and leading ​striker Lautaro Martinez remained an unused substitute as he continues to recover from a muscle injury.

In the 35th minute, ​Estupinan put Milan ahead, timing his run onto a pass played into space before calmly finishing from close range with a powerful strike.

“It is the most important goal of my life, really,” Estupinan told DAZN after the match.

“It was an enormous effort, a ​great performance in the first half, Inter fought back after the restart, because they are a strong side, ​but they still created practically nothing against us," teammate Luka Modric added.

Victory meant Milan completed a league double over Inter with identical ‌1-0 wins.

ALLEGRI ⁠SAYS INTER STILL FAVOURITES

Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri quickly cooled any talk of the Scudetto, stating that a top-four placement and spot in next season's Champions League is the main goal.

"We defended in an orderly way and had a few favourable situations. That said, Inter clearly remain the favourites for the championship," he said.

"Inter have a seven-point ​lead at the top, it’s ​a big advantage, they ⁠are still the strongest team and the clear favourites. We could’ve done better and been sharper in the final third on a few situations.

“We worked seven months to ​make sure we reached March in the best possible condition, because this is ​when the most ⁠important games of the season are played and everything is decided.”

Milan dominated the second half as they pushed for a second goal to seal the match, while Inter struggled to find rhythm in attack.

Tempers flared in the closing minutes ⁠when an ​Inter corner appeared to end up in the net, but the ​referee had already blown the whistle to stop play. The retaken corner came to nothing, drawing a chorus of whistles from the home ​fans as they waited for full-time to come shortly after.