AC Milan extended their unbeaten Serie A run to 18 matches after a dramatic late equaliser earned them a 1-1 draw against Fiorentina at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.

Despite the apparent mismatch between title contenders and relegation strugglers, Fiorentina proved stubborn opposition, though Milan were firmly on the front foot early on. The visitors almost took the lead inside the opening 15 minutes when Christian Pulisic raced through on goal, only to be denied by a superb intervention from David de Gea, who smothered the chance before the American could pull the trigger.

Pulisic was soon in again, and this time managed to round De Gea, but his finish could only find the side netting. The winger was at the heart of almost everything Milan produced in the first half, testing Fiorentina’s goalkeeper once more just before the half-hour mark when his close-range effort was blocked by De Gea’s body after bursting into the box from the left.

Moments later, Pulisic was involved yet again, this time firing wide from the edge of the area as Milan continued to waste promising opportunities. Fiorentina, largely second best before the interval, were relieved to reach half-time on level terms.

La Viola emerged with renewed intent after the restart and quickly forced Mike Maignan into action when Robin Gosens glanced an inswinging cross towards goal, only for the Milan goalkeeper’s legs to keep the ball out. Gosens remained Fiorentina’s primary aerial threat, and his diving header from Dodô’s precise delivery almost caught Maignan out, with the Frenchman forced to tip the ball away under his crossbar.

The breakthrough finally arrived from another set-piece, as Pietro Comuzzo rose highest in the box to power home Albert Gudmundsson’s corner, leaving Maignan with no chance and sending the home crowd into raptures.

Milan responded with attacking changes, and Massimiliano Allegri’s decision to replace Strahinja Pavlovic with Christopher Nkunku proved inspired. Deep into stoppage time, Youssouf Fofana picked out Nkunku inside the area, and the forward made no mistake, smashing his effort in off the post to snatch a point for the visitors.

Nkunku’s third goal in two matches preserved Milan’s impressive unbeaten run, though the Rossoneri remain two points behind Serie A leaders Inter having played a game more. For Fiorentina, the late setback was costly, as they missed the opportunity to climb out of the relegation zone.