The visiting team under the technical guidance of the new coach, Luca Gotti, showed up in Milan confident in their abilities having not yet lost a single match and not even having conceded a goal.
The above, however, did not influence the choices of AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli, who nevertheless decided to field a very attacking formation. The offensive trident formed by Leao-Giroud-Chukwueze was placed behind them, replacing the unavailable Ruben Loftus-Cheek, the American star Christian Pulisic.
So four offensive players with the aim of disrupting Lecce's rearguard.
The match started with a scary surprise for the home team.
A rebound in the penalty area prompted a sudden effort from Spanish midfielder Joan Gonzalez, whose immediate effort went just wide of the post.
After the opportunity created by the visiting team, AC Milan began to dominate completely.
In fact, in the 6th minute the Rossoneri goal came via Christian Pulisic.
The action was triggered by an initiative by Chukwueze who dribbled past his marker and then passed the ball to his American teammate who, from a central position on the edge of the penalty area, shot with his left foot and beat the opposing goalkeeper.
Despite the advantage, AC Milan immediately returned to attacking, almost scoring the second goal again with Pulisic who headed a precise cross from teammate Theo Hernandez. However, the close range shot was neutralized by the reactive intervention of goalkeeper Wladimiro Falcone.
Then it was Rafael Leao who becomes dangerous. The Portuguese striker received the ball from Chukwueze, who was once again the protagonist of an incredible play in which he surpassed several opponents, and kicked towards the goal and due to a deflection from his opponent he came close to his own personal goal.
In the 20th minute, AC Milan took a 2-0 lead with Olivier Giroud's goal.
The French striker was particularly skillful as he anticipated everyone with his head and finished victoriously on goal.
After this terrible phase in favor of the Rossoneri, the visiting team returned to the offensive zone by hitting the crossbar. Again with Joan Gonzalez who made a deep insertion into the penalty area which was excellently served by his teammate Ylber Ramadani.
Subsequently, a few minutes before the end of the first half, an episode occurred which definitely compromised the Lecce players' little hope of returning to the match.
Striker Nikola Krstović, who until then had put in a combative and appreciable performance from the point of view of commitment, was sent off due to a truly dangerous intervention against Chukwueze.
This ended 2-0, in favor of AC Milan, a first half full of episodes and with a fast pace of play.
The second half resumed with two substitutions for Lecce, in an attempt to add more verve to the attacking department, Almqvist and Piccoli came on, while no changes were made for the home team.
The match resumed on the same register as the first half.
In the 57th minute, midfielder Yacine Adli passed deep, unleashing the great speed of Leao who, also favored by the high defense of the visiting team, flew towards the penalty area and therefore found himself alone in front of the opposing goalkeeper who passed with a low shot.
Second consecutive goal for the talented Portuguese, after the one against Fiorentina on the last day.
Shortly afterwards it was Olivier Giroud who finished again towards the Lecce goal.
The French striker was well served by Leao but his left-footed shot ended up on the outside of the net.
After the first hour of play, coach Stefano Pioli decided to bring in fresh resources. So here came Simon Kjaer, Yunus Musah and Luka Jovic.
AC Milan continued to attack relentlessly.
In this phase of the match, the performance of the French full-back Theo Hernandez stood out: on the first occasion he hit the crossbar with a powerful shot from long range and shortly afterwards he also became dangerous from a free kick with a central shot.
The final minutes of the match saw the home team manage ball possession without any particular problems.
The only noteworthy opportunity was created by Serbian striker Luka Jovic who, well served in the penalty area by his teammate Chukwueze, persistently tried to find his personal goal without succeeding due to the save on the line by defender Valentin Gendrey.
With this impressive victory, AC Milan has gained three precious points to consolidate its second position in the championship while keeping its distance from Juventus FC while Lecce, despite the defeat, maintains a three-point advantage from the risky relegation zone.