Overview

• De Bruyne converted a 60th‑minute penalty to cut the deficit to 2–1 at San Siro.
• Conte replaced him in the 72nd minute with Eljif Elmas despite Milan being down to ten men.
• The Belgian appeared visibly angry, muttered on his way off, and avoided contact with the coach on the touchline.
• Conte addressed the reaction publicly, saying, “I hope he was angry about the result; if he was upset about something else, he found the wrong person.”
• The episode follows earlier early substitutions against Cagliari and Fiorentina and a 26‑minute Champions League outing at the Etihad after Giovanni Di Lorenzo’s red card.