Milan beats Salzburg 4-0 as Cisse scores hat-trick in Europa League
Milan won 4-0 at Salzburg on Thursday, 15 October, their first European win of the season. Alphadjo Cisse scored three goals, Gonçalo Ramos added a fourth, and a Milan player was sent off late in the match.
Milan bounce back in Austria
Milan went to Salzburg on Thursday, 15 October, needing a result after a home defeat to Benfica in the first round of the League Phase and a flat draw with Sassuolo. Ruben Amorim, facing questions about his team, said before the match that criticism was normal at a top club and that he had a job to do. He made several changes, starting Camarda from the first minute, with Jashari and Hutchinson also in the side, while Tomori and Loftus-Cheek returned. Il Giornale reported that about 1,500 Milan supporters made the trip to the Red Bull Arena.
Cisse scores three
Hutchinson crossed from the right in the 15th minute and Alphadjo Cisse rose to head Milan in front. Bartesaghi's pass set him up for a left-foot finish in the 32nd minute, and after the break Rabiot's counter-attack gave him a third in the 49th minute. It was the first hat-trick of his career. Opta, cited by Fanpage, put his age at 19 years and 358 days, making him the youngest Italian to score three or more goals in a single European match. Il Giornale noted that gaps in the Salzburg defence helped the visitors throughout.
- Alphadjo Cisse heads Milan in front from Hutchinson's cross
- Cisse doubles the lead with a left-foot finish after Bartesaghi's pass
- Cisse completes his hat-trick, finishing a Rabiot counter-attack
- Gonçalo Ramos scores the fourth goal, set up by Jashari
- A Milan player is sent off for a foul on Schmid
A teenager's rise
Cisse joined Milan from Hellas Verona in February 2026 and was loaned to Catanzaro, where he scored six goals in 22 appearances. An adductor injury then kept him out for several months. He returned to the squad over the preseason and scored on his first start for Milan in August, against Torino. Il Fatto Quotidiano reported that Amorim had said he was captivated by the 19-year-old's qualities. Against Salzburg, Cisse became the centre of the evening, with Il Fatto calling it the European breakthrough he had been building since the summer.
Ramos and the late dismissal
Gonçalo Ramos came off the bench and scored the fourth in the 72nd minute, finishing with his left foot after a pass from Jashari. Fanpage described it as a boost for a striker who has been criticised often this season. The match turned in the 83rd minute, when a Milan player was sent off for a foul on Schmid, who was clean through on goal. The result did not change after that. Il Messaggero reported that the dismissed player will miss Milan's next European match.
What comes next
Milan host Atalanta on Sunday, 18 October, before travelling to Bournemouth on Thursday, 22 October. Lastampa noted that finishing in the top eight of the League Phase table would send Milan directly into the round of 16. The win lifts Milan out of the difficult run that followed the Benfica defeat, although the next two fixtures will test whether the form lasts.
