It has been a horrible four days for AC Milan. First they lost 2-0 to their heated rivals Inter Milan, a result that saw Inter move 9 pints clear of Milan at the top of Serie A. Then tonight Udinese beat them 1-0 to ensure that this will be another trophy less season for the red half of Milan.
Gokhan Inler scored the only goal of the game early in the second half, but this was a game that Udinese controlled and they should have more easily.
Udinese dominated the encounter at the San Siro and were unlucky not to take a 25th-minute lead when Alexis Sanchez struck the post with a right-footed strike from the edge of the area.
The hosts had their first chance in the 28th minute with Marek Jankulovski’s 30-yard strike forcing Handanovic to clear. Handanovic was called on again shortly afterwards to save Mathieu Flamini’s long-range effort.
Udinese almost took the lead on the half-hour mark but Milan goalkeeper Christian Abbiati did well to palm over Antonio Di Natale’s right-footed strike. Sanchez should have broken the deadlock a few minuted later but he failed to beat Abbiati in a one-on-one.
After the restart, Udinese picked up where they left off and they got the goal their play deserved. Sanchez stole the ball from Luca Antonini and played in Inler, whose powerful right-footed strike from the edge of the area beat Abbiati.
Udinese will now face Roma in the semi-final.