Milan holds on with 10 men to edge Udinese while Juventus beats 10-man Lazio

MILAN (AP) — AC Milan rang the changes and was reduced to 10 men and still beat Udinese 1-0 in Serie A on Saturday.

Theo Hernández was suspended and Tammy Abraham, Fikayo Tomori and Rafael Leão were dropped by Milan. The Rossoneri’s task became harder when midfielder Tijjani Reijnders was shown a straight red card in the 29th minute.

Fortunately for Milan, Samuel Chukwueze earned the lead in the 13th minute following yet another assist by Christian Pulisic. They held on after Udinese had two goals ruled out for offside, including one deep in stoppage time.

The Rossoneri moved level on points with third-placed Inter Milan, which plays at Roma on Sunday. Juventus moved two points above them after managing to scrape a late 1-0 win over 10-man Lazio.

Milan lost at Fiorentina 2-1 before the international break in a match in which Hernández and Abraham had penalty kicks saved. Hernández was sent off after the final whistle for insulting the referee and given a two-match ban.

The radically changed Rossoneri started brightly against Udinese and took the lead when Noah Okafor muscled his way down the left flank and rolled it across for Pulisic, who set up Chukwueze to sweep it into the far bottom corner.

Pulisic has been involved in at least one goal in seven straight league matches; producing five goals and three assists.

Milan was dominating until Reijnders was sent off for catching Sandi Lovric’s heel and tripping him as the Udinese midfielder ran clear on goal.

Kingsley Ehizibue thought he headed Udinese level on the stroke of halftime but he was offside by the tightest of margins.

Pulisic came close to doubling Milan’s lead in the 75th but his effort was saved by Maduka Okoye. Abraham, who had come on only three minutes earlier, injured his shoulder as he tried to bundle in the rebound and had to be taken off.

Udinese appeared to level again when Christian Kabasele headed in a rebound in the fifth minute of stoppage time. However, VAR ruled another tight offside decision in the chaotic buildup.

Lazio managed to hold out for more than an hour with 10 men before an own goal consigned it to defeat.

Defender Alessio Romagnoli was issued a straight red card in the 24th for a tackle on Juve's Pierre Kalulu when he was clear on goal.

Despite the numerical disadvantage, Juventus didn't have a shot on target until the 81st when Lazio goalkeeper Ivan Provedel parried a curled Dusan Vlahovic effort.

The home side was gifted the winning goal four minutes later when Lazio defender Mario Gila tried to intercept a cross from Juan Cabal and succeeded only in turning it into his own net.

Vlahovic had also earlier hit the crossbar in one of Juve's few sights of goal.

A second-half double from Andrea Pinamonti saw Genoa come back from two goals down to draw with Bologna 2-2.

Bologna, which faces Aston Villa in the Champions League midweek, thought it was heading for what would have been only its second win after goals from Riccardo Orsolini and Jens Odgaard.

But Pinamonti curled into the far bottom corner in the 73rd and headed in a free kick 12 minutes later.

Como drew with Parma 1-1 in a match between promoted sides.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

CORRECTS DAY - Juventus' head coach Thiago Motta at the Serie A soccer match against Lazio, at the Allianz Stadium in Torino, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (Marco Alpozzi/LaPresse via AP)

CORRECTS DAY- Lazio's Patric, left, vies for the ball with Juventus' Dusan Vlahovic during the Serie A soccer match at the Allianz Stadium in Torino, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (Marco Alpozzi/LaPresse via AP)

CORRECTS DAY - Lazio's Alessio Romagnoli is issued a red card during the Serie A soccer match against Juventus at the Allianz Stadium in Torino, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (Marco Alpozzi/LaPresse via AP)

THE GOAL WAS DISALLOWED - Udinese's Christian Kabasele, right, celebrates after scoring a disallowed goal during the Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Udinese at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

AC Milan's Tammy Abraham reacts leaving the pitch after an injury during the Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Udinese at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

AC Milan's Christian Pulisic, left, and Udinese's Iker Bravo challenge for the ball during the Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Udinese at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

AC Milan's Tijjani Reijnders leaves the pitch after receiving the red card during the Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Udinese at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

AC Milan's Samuel Chukwueze, second from left, celebrates with Christian Pulisic, left, after scoring the opening goal during the Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Udinese at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

AC Milan's Samuel Chukwueze, background centre, celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Udinese at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

THE GOAL WAS DISALLOWED Udinese's Christian Kabasele, second from right, celebrates with teammates after scoring a disallowed goal during the Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Udinese at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

AC Milan's Samuel Chukwueze, left, and Udinese's Jordan Zemura challenge for the ball during the Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Udinese at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s government accused the United States of attacking civilian and military installations in multiple states after at least seven explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard around 2 a.m. local time Saturday in the capital, Caracas.

The Pentagon and White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Smoke could be seen rising from the hangar of a military base in Caracas. Another military installation in the capital was without power.

People in various neighborhoods rushed to the streets. Some could be seen in the distance from various areas of Caracas.

“The whole ground shook. This is horrible. We heard explosions and planes,” said Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker, her voice trembling. She was walking briskly with two relatives, returning from a birthday party. “We felt like the air was hitting us.”

Venezuela’s government, in the statement, called on its supporters to take to the streets.

“People to the streets!” the statement said. “The Bolivarian Government calls on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack.”

The statement added that President Nicolás Maduro had “ordered all national defense plans to be implemented” and declared “a state of external disturbance.”

This comes as the U.S. military has been targeting, in recent days, alleged drug-smuggling boats. On Friday, Venezuela said it was open to negotiating an agreement with the U.S. to combat drug trafficking.

Maduro also said in a pretaped interview aired Thursday that the U.S. wants to force a government change in Venezuela and gain access to its vast oil reserves through the monthslong pressure campaign that began with a massive military deployment to the Caribbean Sea in August.

Maduro has been charged with narco-terrorism in the U.S. The CIA was behind a drone strike last week at a docking area believed to have been used by Venezuelan drug cartels in what was the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil since the U.S. began strikes on boats in September.

U.S. President Donald Trump for months had threatened that he could soon order strikes on targets on Venezuelan land. The U.S. has also seized sanctioned oil tankers off the coast of Venezuela, and Trump ordered a blockade of others in a move that seemed designed to put a tighter chokehold on the South American country’s economy.

The U.S. military has been attacking boats in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean since early September. As of Friday, the number of known boat strikes is 35 and the number of people killed is at least 115, according to numbers announced by the Trump administration.

They followed a major buildup of American forces in the waters off South America, including the arrival in November of the nation’s most advanced aircraft carrier, which added thousands more troops to what was already the largest military presence in the region in generations.

Trump has justified the boat strikes as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S. and asserted that the U.S. is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels.

Meanwhile, Iranian state television reported on the explosions in Caracas on Saturday, showing images of the Venezuelan capital. Iran has been close to Venezuela for years, in part due to their shared enmity of the U.S.

Pedestrians walk past the Miraflores presidential palace after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Cristian Hernandez)

Residents evacuate a building near the Miraflores presidential palace after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Cristian Hernandez)

Smoke raises at La Carlota airport after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

Pedestrians run after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

Smoke raises at La Carlota airport after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

Smoke raises at La Carlota airport after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

Pedestrians run after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)