Carlos Bacca struck twice, including a second-half winner as AC Milan

got back to winning ways after last week’s derby defeat thanks to a 2-1

win over Palermo at the San Siro on Saturday.

Bacca was one of two strikers, along with Luiz Adriano and on-loan

Liverpool misfit Mario Balotelli, recruited by the fallen Serie A giants

during the summer, as they look to become protagonists in Serie A this

season in a bid to qualify for Europe.

The Colombian international opened the scoring in the 21st minute

and, after Oscar Hiljemark had hit his second of the night to level

Giacomo Bonaventura’s 40th minute free kick, he restored Milan’s lead on

75 minutes with a powerful glancing header.

Milan, defeated 1-0 by Inter Milan in the city derby last week, held

on to claim their second win in four games to move up to ninth place at

three points behind leaders Inter ahead of the rest of the weekend’s

fixtures.

Inter are away to on-form Chievo on Sunday, when Roma host Sassuolo

and champions Juventus, in lowly 16th with just one point from three

games, face a potentially difficult trip to Genoa.

After a commendable performance away to Inter last week, Milan coach

Sinisa Mihajlovic had stressed the need to get back to winning ways and

the Rossoneri were quickly into their stride. 

The hosts were almost gifted an early opener when Palermo ‘keeper

Stefano Sorrentino stuck out a thigh to stop Aljaz Struna’s ball going

into his own net.

Milan suffered an early blow when defender Ignazio Abate suffered a

thigh problem and was forced off to be replaced by 18-year-old Davide

Calabria.

But the early setback failed to unsettle the hosts, who broke the

deadlock on 21 minutes when Bacca pounced on Giacomo Bonaventura’s neat

backheel flick inside the area to beat Sorrentino with the outside of

his right boot.

Milan should have doubled their lead when Bacca was fed inside the

area after Keisuke Honda intercepted a poor clearance, but the Colombian

saw Sorrentino block.

Yet the hosts were never far from danger and Hiljemark exposed their

defensive frailties just after the half hour when he nicked in between

two defenders to head past Diego Lopez from close range following a

corner.

Bonaventura restored Milan’s lead in style with a superb curling free

kick that beat Sorrentino on 40 minutes, but the goal failed to dampen

the visitors’ spirits.

Palermo, unbeaten in their opening three games, were intent on taking

a share of the spoils back to Sicily and levelled in style on 72

minutes when Hiljemark finished off a fine passing move with Alberto

Gilardino to run in unchallenged and slot the ball under the onrushing

Lopez.

It looked to have secured a point for Giuseppe Iachini’s men, but

their celebrations were soon cut short when Bacca rose to meet Juraj

Kucka’s swinging cross in from the right to power a glancing header past

the diving Sorrentino.

To their credit, Palermo piled on the pressure and Lopez was tested

twice immediately, the Spaniard getting down low to bat away Hiljemark’s

drive from 25 metres and then diving to his left to cover Franco

Vazquez’s drive as it inched past the upright.