Serie A Disastrous debut: Dele Alli sees red after 10-min cameo as Walker pleads with referee

Dele Alli was shown a red card just 10 minutes into his Como debut as Cesc Fabregas' side fell to a 2-1 defeat to AC Milan at the San Siro.

The England midfielder, playing competitively for the first time since his loan spell at Besiktas in February 2023, was sent off after stepping on Ruben Loftus-Cheek's calf in the dying embers of the Serie A encounter.

The referee Matteo Marchetti initially showed the former Tottenham Hotspur and Everton man a yellow card, but upon a VAR review, reached for his back pocket to send Alli off in his first appearance in Italy.

Alli had been introduced by Fabregas in the 81st minute as Como's final throw of the dice in Milan, with the big-spending giants trailing 2-1 thanks to Tijani Reijnders turning the tide in the 75th minute, after Lucas da Cunha had opened the scoring on 33 minutes, before Christian Pulisic equalised eight minutes into the second half.

Even more surprising was Kyle Walker, Alli's compatriot and the AC Milan right-back, who seemed to try and reason with Marchetti to keep the Como midfielder on the pitch, despite the fact that with 10 men, Walker's side would have an infinitely easier task of holding out for victory.

However, Walker's pleas were not listened to by the Italian official, who gave Alli his marching orders, before also sending off Como manager Fabregas, whose protestations will likely earn him a touchline ban.

The win hauls Sergio Conceicao's Rossoneri into seventh in the Serie A, seven points adrift of fourth-placed Juventus, who occupy the final UEFA Champions League qualification spot.

Milan face title-chasing Napoli next up, with Antonio Conte's Partenopei a point off league leaders Inter Milan.