Pato has not recovered in time to face Manchester United tonight as he still feels pain in his right leg. Pato was included in the squad and also travelled with the team to Manchester but the recovery has not gone as planned.

The decision was made between doctors, player and coaching staff. Pato only ran on Tuesday at Old Trafford and was not confident to take the field.

With Pato’s absence, this gives room for David Beckham to take his place.

Good news from the Milan camp that Pato will feature against Manchester United next Wednesday. However, he will miss the game against Roma this weekend as a precaution.

Pato limped off the field after scoring two goals against Atalanta. What looked like a serious injury has now been diagnosed as a muscle strain.

Milan need to win by two goals if they want to advance to the next round of the Champions League.

Pato scored two goals during the win against Atalanta tonight but had to leave the game at the 80th minute after pulling a muscle. It is still unknown exactly what the injury is but it looked quite bad and he is now likely to miss the Champions League clash against Manchester United.

“We will have to wait 24 to 48 hours before knowing the extent of the injury,” said Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani.

Pato was out for a few months this season due to an adductor injury and coach Leonardo fears that it might be the same problem.

“We have to see what type of injury he’s suffered but it’s true that his last injury was to an adductor so that is a little worry,” coach Leonardo told Sky Italia.

Fiorentina hosted Milan tonight and it was a game that both needed to win. Milan needed the points to edge closer to Inter but it was Fiorentina who went ahead early with a goal from Gilardino. The former Milan player was in the right place at the right time, after Stevan Jovetic shot found Gilardino for the easy tap in.

It was no surprise that Milan wanted to win the game as they kept attacking but were unable to find a goal. It was not until the 81st minute when substitute Klaas-Jan Huntelaar linked up with Ronadinho to strike a shot past Sebastian Frey to level the game.

La Viola had a chance to win the game but a penalty appeal was waved off by the referee and then four minutes from time Vargus fired a shot from distance forcing Abbiati to make an excellent save.

In injury time, it looked like both team were going to walk away with a point each but it was Ronaldinho’s magic that created a goal scoring opportunity for Pato, who made no mistakes and fired it between Frey’s legs to give Milan all the points.

Milan are now only 4 points behind Inter and will face Atalanta and Roma next.

Alexandre Pato scored Milan’s second goal against Bari to secure the much needed 3 points. With Inter being clear favourites to take the Scudetto and Roma fighting for second, Pato has stated that Milan are not thinking about the other teams.

“We are only thinking about ourselves and our work,” said Pato after the match.

“Trying to catch Roma and Inter do not interest us. We are all united at this time, and want to win, and only win.”

Pato has been left put of the Brazilian Team once again as they face Ireland in a friendly in March. However, Pato knows that he needs to do well with Milan if he wants to secure a spot in the World Cup.

“I am not totally thinking about playing for Brazil at the World Cup. I have to keep on doing my best and playing well with Milan,” Pato concluded.

After coming on as a substitute for the injured Mancini, Pato wasted no time in getting back on the scoresheet.

A brilliant no look pass from Ronaldinho was chested down by Pato. Pato made no mistake despite a last effort tackle from the defender as he put Milan upfront by two goals.

This is great news for Milan and the fans as Pato although not 100 per cent still looked threatening. He is still a little bit short of match fitness but come Tuesday he should be ready to play from the start.