AC Milan forward Rafael Leao said "dreaming costs nothing" as he outlined the team's ambitions to push on in the Serie A title race.

Milan sit top of Serie A after Leao grabbed the decisive goal against Lazio on Saturday, in a 1-0 win at San Siro.

There was late drama as the visitors were denied a penalty following a VAR review, with Massimiliano Allegri's frustrations leading to the Milan boss being shown a red card.

However, Milan survived and will now watch on as fellow title contenders Napoli and Roma do battle on Sunday, while fourth-place Inter are also in action.

Milan missed out on Europe altogether last season, but Leao does not believe they should limit their goals for this term, given their position.

He told Sky Sport Italia: "We’ve got to keep this going, we beat a strong Lazio side who wanted to climb the table, and we’re very happy.

"We are on the right path, but there are many games to go this season. We worked very well this week and want to keep it going.

"We play Lazio again in four days [in the Coppa Italia] and want to beat them again, with help from our incredible fans.

"Allegri is a winner, he won here before at Milan, and he is able to keep everyone on their toes.”

"You saw those who came off the bench had the right attitude and that makes it easier to win something important,” added Leao when pressed on Scudetto ambitions.

"Dreaming costs nothing, but there’s a long road ahead of us. The Coppa Italia is an objective too, for this season."

Leao, who helped Milan win Serie A in 2022, has now registered 101 direct goal involvements in the competition since his Rossoneri debut (60 goals, 41 assists).

He is the fourth player to surpass 100 with a single team since his debut in the 2019-20 season, after Domenico Berardi (115 with Sassuolo), Ciro Immobile (125 with Lazio) and Lautaro Martinez (139 with Inter).

Milan coach Allegri echoed Leao's sentiment.

"We’ve just got to keep working, maintaining this humility and desire to win the ball back, to play as a team unit," Allegri told Sky Sports Italia, as reported by Football Italia.

"There is good enthusiasm within the squad and with the fans. They give their all and don’t hold back. That is the most important quality we need to keep going."

Quizzed on his late dismissal, Allegri explained: "It was a bit chaotic in the final minutes, but it was not easy for the referee either, to make this decision when he was called by the VAR.

"It was the same referee as the opening game when we lost to Cremonese, so I just asked how come every time with him there’s a problem?

"So he sent me off. In the chaos, it’s only natural he would make that decision, but I certainly didn’t mean to offend him."