AC Milan assistant Marco Landucci believed a series of "unlucky" events led to his team's shock 1-0 defeat to Parma at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on Sunday.
Landucci, who was in the dugout because Massimiliano Allegri was suspended, watched on as Mariano Troilo's 80th-minute goal sealed a 1-0 win for the visitors.
The result saw Milan taste defeat in Serie A for the first time since their opening-day loss against Cremonese, ending their 24-match unbeaten run in the top flight (W15 D9).
Indeed, they also failed to score for the second time in the league this season, while it was the first time they had failed to find the back of the net at home since April 2025.
But the match started with Ruben Loftus-Cheek being involved in a nasty collision with Edoardo Corvi and being forced to withdraw from the contest in the 11th minute.
Rafael Leao then hit the post before Troilo headed beyond Mike Maignan, with the goal initially ruled out for a foul on the Milan goalkeeper before the decision was overturned by referee Marco Piccinini following a VAR review.
"I think Serie A is the most difficult league in the world, because it is so very balanced, and every game has hidden dangers," Landucci told Sky Sport Italia.
"There are games that just don't go your way. Today, Gabbia got hurt in the warm-up, and we were forced to make a change at the last minute.
"Then Loftus-Cheek got hurt immediately and suffered a nasty knock. It was a bit of an unlucky evening."
Defeat on matchday 26. pic.twitter.com/fRU00Q5dMo
— AC Milan (@acmilan) February 22, 2026
But, more importantly, Milan's defeat saw them lose ground on rivals and Serie A leaders Inter, with the gap now 10 points between first and second place.
The Opta supercomputer has now assigned the Rossoneri just a 3.1% chance of lifting the title, with Inter given a 96.1% win probability in its season simulations.
"The team was disappointed, we tried to reassure them," Landucci added.
"We mustn't think about the other sides, but our own journey, getting as many points as possible. Our objective is to get back into the Champions League."
Milan had their chances in the match, though, registering 25 efforts which tallied an expected goals (xG) total of 1.33, but only six of their shots were on target.
It was the first time they'd had that many attempts without scoring since April 2022 when they managed 33 against Bologna, much to the annoyance of Landucci.
"We are not happy, obviously," Landucci added. "Parma played very well and the ball just didn't want to go in for us tonight.
"We wanted the three points, so of course we felt let down, but we go again from Tuesday."