Christopher Nkunku fired AC Milan top of Serie A with a brace in Sunday's 3-0 win over Verona at the San Siro, the France forward's first goals in Italy's top flight.
Nkunku doubled Milan's lead two minutes after half-time with a penalty he had earned, ending a league drought stretching back to February when he was playing for Chelsea in England.
Five minutes later he tapped home the third to ensure the hosts a one-point lead over Napoli who won 2-0 at Cremonese thanks to a Rasmus Hojlund double.
The 28-year-old Nkunku's only previous goal for Milan since signing from Chelsea for an initial 37 million euros ($43.6 million) in August came against Lecce in the Italian Cup in September.
"He's a sensitive lad, one who is keen to do well here... I think he can continue to improve just like we have to," said Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri.
"We're going to need everyone because we have a really busy schedule over the next month or so."
On song 🎤 pic.twitter.com/suwZSZqtVB
— AC Milan (@acmilan) December 28, 2025
Milan were sent on their way to a comprehensive victory on the stroke of half-time by Christian Pulisic who continued his sensational form by scoring his eighth goal in 11 Serie A appearances.
Pulisic, who has lost around a month of this campaign to injury, has played a part in 50 goals in Serie A since arriving at Milan in 2023.
He broke Verona's spirited resistance when he prodded home Adrien Rabiot's flick-on at a corner in the first minute of stoppage time at the end of the first half.
LeBron James of calcio 😏🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/oc8VrTqDuK
— AC Milan (@acmilan) December 28, 2025
It helped Milan confidently beat one of the lower ranked teams, something which Allegri's players have had a hard time doing even though they haven't been beaten in Serie A since the opening day of the season.
Nkunku made sure of the points and made his case to lead the line for Milan, with Mexico striker Santiago Gimenez out until February and Niclas Fullkrug set to sign from West Ham next month.
Verona, who had won their last two matches against Atalanta and Fiorentina, stay in the relegation zone, two points behind Genoa who sit just outside the bottom three and face Roma on Monday.
HOJLUND ON A ROLL
Hojlund took his all-competitions goal tally for Napoli to nine as champions Napoli cruised to the three points in Cremona and maintained their push to retain the Scudetto.
Fresh from winning the Italian Super Cup in Saudi Arabia, Napoli were the better team from the first whistle and were deservedly ahead in the 13th minute when Hojlund pounced on a deflection to net from close range.
And Hojlund was again in the right place at the right time seconds before the break when Alessio Zerbin could only divert Matteo Politano's cross straight to the Denmark striker, who calmly poked home.
Hojlund has scored six times in 12 Serie A appearances, two more than he managed in an entire Premier League campaign with Manchester United last season.
Sunday's brace was his second for Napoli after he also scored both goals in their win earlier this month over fierce rivals Juventus who drop down to fourth, three points behind Milan.
⏹️ Full time: #CremoneseNapoli 0-2
— Official SSC Napoli (@en_sscnapoli) December 28, 2025
💙 #ForzaNapoliSempre pic.twitter.com/8VtPKJDxbf
"I'm just happy for the result. Obviously 2-0 here is not easy, Cremonese have done a lot of trouble to a lot of teams this season... It's a great three points," said Hojlund, who played in Italy for Atalanta before United.
"I'm getting better every season. Obviously when I was at Atalanta I was a bit younger and I've got a bit more experience now. I've played in the Premier League and in the Champions League and I'm playing with very good players now."
Inter can reclaim top spot later on Sunday when they make the short trip to Bergamo to face Atalanta who have been revitalised since Raffaele Palladino took charge last month.