CHICAGO — Samuel Chukwueze’s goal in the 55th minute secured a 1-0 victory for AC Milan over Real Madrid on Wednesday night at Soldier Field during an international friendly.
Chukwueze capitalized on a pass from Mattia Liberali, sending the ball past goalkeeper Thibault Courtois from 8 yards out as he raced unmarked down the right side.
“The result isn’t that important, but winning in general is important,” newly appointed Milan coach Paulo Fonseca said. “I’m really positive about tonight. It was our clear intention to dominate the game with the ball.”
Real Madrid managed eight shots, six in the second half. Brazilian forward Endryck Moreira’s shot in the 12th minute, which appeared to be their best chance, was ruled offside. Goalkeeper Lorenzo Torriani saved it before the offside flag was raised.
Milan had 10 shots, including one from U.S. national team captain Christian Pulisic, who entered the game in the 65th minute. Courtois saved Pulisic’s 10-yard kick from the right side.
Real Madrid, missing key players like Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham in the preseason series, saw coach Carlos Angelotti integrating newcomer Moreira into the lineup for the first time.
“We ran with a younger squad, so we knew it wasn’t going to be the easiest match,” Angelotti said through an interpreter. “They had a lot of possession, the momentum. They played the quicker game.”
AC Milan, coming off a 3-2 victory over Manchester City on Saturday, also featured a number of substitutes under Fonseca.
“We’ve got three weeks of work ahead of us before Serie A starts,” Fonseca said. “It’ll take a lot of work to improve, but we can see something happening in our game.”
Chukwueze, who had one goal last season for Milan in 24 appearances, had Milan’s best first-half chance in the eighth minute, but Courtois made a diving stop.
Real Madrid hopeful Cesar Palacios injured his left knee on a hard tackle four minutes into the second half.