Despite looking a bit youthful in the side, it was unsurprising that Milan dominated early on, charging forward almost at will.
Emerson Royal was the first to try his luck before his intervention with a shot that headed towards the corner of Nicola Leali's net.
Milan kept the pressure on and Samuel Chukwueze had a golden opportunity to break the deadlock on 24', but had to curse his luck when he could only shoot just wide of the left post after meeting a ball across the area. by Alex Jimenez.
Amid the almost relentless waves of red and black, there was little sign of Genoa creating a chance of their own.
However, they almost had a chance to take the lead shortly before the break when a rookie error from 17-year-old Mattia Liberali saw Fabio Miretti fall with a clumsy challenge in a rare outing for Genoa.
He was spared a nightmare debut at senior level by some leniency on the pitch and in the VAR room, earning Milan a hint of gratitude as they retreated goalless to the dressing room.
Alvaro Morata was brought on in place of Tammy Abraham, but the potential benefits of having new legs up front failed to materialize as Genoa continued to oust their hosts.
And while it never looked like they would get their first away win over Milan since a behind-closed-doors affair in 2020, a youthful Milan line-up was matched physically, and somewhat plagued, by the ashes of Morten Thorsby and Andrea Pinamonti – the latter being a scorer of no fewer than four opening goals for Genoa prior to kick-off.
Milan's frustrations visibly increased as the match approached the final fifteen minutes, with audible groans greeting a near-miss from Morata.
Tijjani Reijnders' rapid run through the middle ended with the Spaniard coming within striking distance of the net, but he could only curl high, wide and (not very) beautifully.
More pain would come just a few minutes later when another sweeping move from close range saw Morata hit the crossbar with the goal gaping after a cutting ball through the Genoa lines.
In reality, the prospect of Genoa completing a run of three consecutive Serie A victories for the first time since November 2014 always seemed unlikely. However, this will undoubtedly be seen as a positive result and a moral victory, especially against a side they have now beaten just once in fourteen league games.
However, a more negative side note is that they are only two points ahead of eighteenth-placed Cagliari. As for Milan, this is a potentially devastating result for their hopes of securing Champions League football through the competition, even if it is now just one defeat in ten games for Paulo Fonseca's men.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Emerson Royal (AC Milan)
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