Franck Kessie relished a new more advanced role with a brace, while Alessandro Florenzi and Theo Hernandez were also on target as Milan conquered Empoli 4-2.
The Rossoneri were reeling after a poor run of results and lost Zlatan Ibrahimovic to injury, joining Rafael Leao, Simon Kjaer, Ante Rebic, Pietro Pellegri, Davide Calabria and Alessandro Plizzari on the absentee list. Theo Hernandez returned after flu symptoms, but Franck Kessie was moved into a more advanced trequartista role. Empoli missed Nicolas Haas and started ex-Milan youth product Patrick Cutrone.
An acrobatic Junior Messias shot was straight at Guglielmo Vicario, while Mike Maignan had to rush off his line and time the interception perfectly to stop Cutrone going clear.
Milan took the lead when Olivier Giroud with his back to goal laid off an Alexis Saelemaekers cross for Kessie to drill in from 15 yards. It was not dissimilar to the goal disallowed against Napoli, except this time Giroud was on the ground and not offside.
The situation did not last long, as Kessie cleared a cross only as far as Nedim Bajrami to fire in from a tricky angle on the half-volley, the bounce surprising Maignan.
Andrea Pinamonti caught Fikayo Tomori napping to get the angled drive away, forcing a desperate reaction save from Maignan at the near post.
Instead, Milan restored their advantage with another Kessie goal, as he managed to squeeze the finish through Vicario’s legs at the near bottom corner when everyone expected a pull-back.
Saelemaekers forced a fingertip save at the near stick and on the resulting corner Giroud failed to turn in from close range.
Empoli thought they’d equalised straight after the restart, but Bajrami cut back inside Alessandro Florenzi only to smash it onto the underside of the crossbar, then Sandro Tonali performed a goal-line clearance on the Pinamonti rebound.
Milan gave themselves a two-goal cushion with a well-taken Alessandro Florenzi free kick, which he curled on the inside of the Empoli wall where his teammates had got out of the way, settling in at the near bottom corner. The former Roma and PSG man was about to be substituted when he scored.
Theo Hernandez added a fourth moments later, controlling a deflected Saelemaekers cross with his chest and shoulder at the back post before volleying in.
It wasn’t over, because Tiemoue Bakayoko blocked a cross with his arm out in front of him, Pinamonti sending Maignan the wrong way from the penalty spot.
Alessio Romagnoli almost scored a fifth with the last kick of the game, a spectacular volley cannoning off the crossbar.
Empoli 2-4 Milan
Kessie 12, 42 (M), Bajrami 18 (E), Florenzi 64 (M), Theo Hernandez 69 (M), Pinamonti pen 84 (E)