Rome, Jan 19 (IANS): Zlatan Ibrahimovic's double helped AC Milan enjoy a 2-0 victory away to Cagliari in their latest encounter, despite Alexis Saelemaekers's red card.

With Rafael Leao suspended, and Theo Hernandez and Hakan Calhanoglu having tested positive for Covid-19, Milan on Monday evening started with Diogo Dalot and Jens Hauge, while Brahim Diaz roamed behind Ibrahimovic, reports Xinhua news agency.

The Rossoneri broke the deadlock just seven minutes into the game as Ibrahimovic was brought down in the box. The Swede kept his composure to convert the spot-kick.

The away side doubled the lead in the 52nd minute as Davide Calabria's cross-field ball found Ibrahimovic, who turned in from point-blank range.

The goal was initially ruled out for offside, but a VAR check overturned the decision.

The downside for the Diavolo was Saelemaekers's sending off, with the Belgian collecting two yellow cards just eight minutes after coming on as a substitute.

Milan still lead the table with 43 points, three ahead of city rivals Inter.