Tijjani Reijnders' second-half strike proved decisive in AC Milan's 1-0 win away to Verona in Serie A on Friday.

An earlier claim for a penalty was waved away when Jackson Tchatchoua's arm was almost fully across his chest as he was struck by Rafael Leao's acrobatic volley.

Samuel Chukwueze's long-range effort was easily saved, but Mike Maignan was forced into his first real save of the game when Thomas Suslov's one-on-one shot was blocked by Amin Sarr.

There was bad news for AC Milan in the 32nd minute: Rafael Leao went off with a muscle problem. He was replaced by Theo Hernandez, who played in a more advanced position than usual, while Alex Jimenez continued to play at left-back.

The visitors finally got on the scoresheet in the 56th minute when Reijnders curled a first-time shot into the top corner. Youssouf Fofana was instrumental in the goal, his through ball breaking through the defence.

Milan are seventh on 26 points, 11 behind Serie A leaders Atalanta. Verona are 17th on 15 points.

Milan coach Paulo Fonseca was once again hit by injuries, with Alvaro Morata, Christian Pulisic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Yunus Musah, Noah Okafor, Luka Jovic, Ismael Bennacer and Alessandro Florenzi all missing, while Leao's first-half injury reduced the number of first-team players again.

Milan have one more game to play this year, when they host Roma at the end of the month. Verona's next opponents are Bologna, who will be desperate to pick up enough points to stay in Serie A next year.