Mike Maignan's unorthodox penalty-saving tactics proved decisive as Milan held on for a 1-0 victory over Inter in the Derby della Madonnina at San Siro. The goalkeeper's mind games got into the head of Inter captain Hakan Calhanoglu, who saw his spot-kick saved for the first time in his Serie A career.
Inter were awarded a penalty in the 73rd minute after a VAR review showed Strahinja Pavlovic stepping on Marcus Thuram's foot. Calhanoglu, who had scored 27 of 28 penalties for Inter and all three for Milan before, stepped up with his usual confidence. However, Maignan positioned himself a step to the left of centre, daring the Turkey captain to aim for his favoured bottom-left corner. Calhanoglu kept his shot on target, but Maignan hurled himself across and made a strong save.
The save was the highlight of a stellar performance from Maignan, who had already made several brilliant stops to keep Milan in the game. Inter dominated the first half, with Thuram, Francesco Acerbi, and Lautaro Martínez all denied by the goalkeeper or the woodwork. Martínez's reaction after one save—a shrug of weary grievance—summed up Inter's frustration.
Milan, by contrast, were efficient. In the 54th minute, Youssouf Fofana won two challenges to launch a counter-attack, feeding Alexis Saelemaekers, whose shot was parried by Yann Sommer. Christian Pulisic swept in the rebound for the only goal. After scoring, Milan defended resolutely, limiting Inter's chances until the penalty incident.
Italy legend Gianluigi Buffon praised Maignan's positioning, saying he would have taken the same stance but was unsure if he could have made the save. The win was a classic Massimiliano Allegri performance: compact, cautious, and patient, securing all three points despite being outplayed for large spells.
