(Reuters) -AC Milan won 2-0 at relegation-threatened Empoli on Saturday thanks to second-half goals from Rafael Leao and Santiago Gimenez in a Serie A clash that ended with both sides down to 10 men.
Milan rose to seventh place with 38 points, four away from European spots while Empoli remain 17th with 21 points, one above the drop zone.
The first half had few scoring opportunities, with Milan's Joao Felix shooting wide after 20 minutes before Lorenzo Colombo struck the woodwork in the closest chance to put the hosts ahead past the half-hour mark.
Milan coach Sergio Conceicao sought to spark some life into his attack with the introduction of Gimenez, Leao and Christian Pulisic after the break, and his decision paid off with the three substitutes key in turning the game.
"The three points are the most important thing. We had difficulty in the first half, but did well after the two red cards," Pulisic told DAZN.
"This is the spirit we need, we have a lot of quality in the squad, now even more with the new signings."
TWO RED CARDS
The visitors were reduced to 10 men after Fikayo Tomori received a second yellow card in the 55th minute.
But the disadvantage was short-lived as Empoli's Luca Marianucci was shown a straight red card following a VAR review for kicking out at Gimenez 10 minutes later.
Leao then opened the scoring in the 68th minute with a towering header off a Pulisic cross and Milan's new signing Gimenez made it 2-0 with a superb curling effort after cutting inside a defender in the box 14 minutes from time.
"Games are always difficult in Serie A, so we had to push really hard, but we made it," Gimenez said.
Milan next play at Feyenoord in the Champions League knockout playoffs on Wednesday.
"It’s going to be really tough, it's a lot of emotion because Feyenoord gave me a lot, they are like family," the 23-year-old Gimenez added on facing his former team.
(Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios in Mexico City; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
