Three points separate AC Milan from Juventus in the table, with the teams occupying the last of the Champions League places in Italy. For the Rossoneri, there’s the element of going trophyless this season, but from the perspective of their league finish, achieving Champions League football would have been their ultimate objective.
The objectives did change during the course of the season, as Milan found themselves in the thick of a title race. However, ahead of their mammoth clash with Juventus, a win would only bring temporary relief from the inevitable outcome of Inter Milan lifting the Scudetto title either this weekend or the next.
After going on a massive unbeaten run, Milan have lost three of their last five Serie A games, which has all but ended their title chase and pushed them into a top-four race. With Napoli winning on Friday night, there’s pressure on Milan to regain second spot, although a loss to Juventus will see the visitors go level on points with Massimiliano Allegri’s side — a prospect that will ensure a tight end to the Champions League race.
Juventus, on the other hand, are on a good run of form heading to the San Siro, with their tails up following recent performances. Back in February, when they lost at home to Como, the result also afforded Cesc Fabregas’ side a sniff at a top-four place, which they have fought for since.
However, Juventus have stitched together a seven-game unbeaten run since that game in the league, winning four of those, including the last three heading into the San Siro. Momentum is clearly with Luciano Spalletti’s side ahead of Sunday, but they must ensure they make full use of it.
Moreover, the drop-off from close rivals Como and Roma has allowed Juventus to open up a five-point gap between themselves and those teams. Spalletti will want to keep this buffer for as long as possible as he targets a win over old rivals Milan at the San Siro on Sunday.
Milan have a near full squad available for Allegri to select from, except Matteo Gabbia and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, the duo out with an ankle problem and a jawbone injury, respectively.
There will be some selection decisions for Allegri to make, given how toothless his side has been in the attacking third of late. Even though his main front two of Christian Pulisic and Rafael Leao have scored eight and nine goals respectively, neither are in good form.
Hence, there is wiggle room for the manager to experiment with his forward line, as Allegri does have Niclas Fullkrug, Christopher Nkunku, and the fit-again Santiago Gimenez. One of the big attractions of this game is the presence of Adrien Rabiot, who featured more than 150 times for Juventus, as he will take his place in the Rossoneri midfield alongside Youssouf Fofana and Luka Modric.
The overall structure of the team will have a familiar feel to it, and possibly even the forward line, as Allegri might resort to handing the keys to Pulisic and Leao once again.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2) – Maignan; Tomori, Gabbia, Pavlovic; Saelemaekers, Fofana, Modric, Rabiot, Bartesaghi; Pulisic, Leao
The fitness report over at Juventus is nothing out of the ordinary, as Spalletti has his full squad from recent games. Only Arkadiusz Milik, Juan Cabal, Mattia Perin, and Dusan Vlahovic are thought to be out of contention, although the latter could still make the matchday squad after being in training lately.
There have been a few returning players to training, including Khephren Thuram as well as Perin, while Emil Holm and Vasilije Adzic are also part of that group.
Kenan Yildiz, who has been experiencing an ongoing knee issue, should be fit enough to feature, while Thuram is also expected to take his midfield spot alongside regular partner Manuel Locatelli. Gleison Bremer and Lloyd Kelly will continue in central defence, with Pierre Kalulu and Andrea Cambiaso taking up the full-back slots.
In the attacking third, Jonathan David might be selected to lead the line, which is a sign that Spalletti could temporarily move away from a false nine, with Weston McKennie operating in the attacking midfield role. Francisco Conceiçāo and Yıldız will provide the width.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1) – Di Gregorio; Kalulu, Bremer, Kelly, Cambiaso; Thuram, Locatelli; Conceicao, McKennie, Yildiz; David
There is the element of now competing in the top-four race and cementing second spot for Milan, which might constitute a successful season. However, there’s the matter of confirming that position, for which Allegri will need all hands on deck — especially his misfiring attackers, and narrowing it down, Leao in particular.
Leao’s form has been inconsistent at best since February, and of late, after a four-game drought, he finally registered a goal contribution by assisting the Rabiot winner against Hellas Verona. There’s an expectation from the manager and fans alike for star players like Leão to step up at this stage of the campaign, as he should be the danger man for the Juventus defence.
This is a big game by all accounts, and these are teams known to make things tight on occasions like these. Juventus will probably come into this one in a superior vein of form compared to their hosts, but they may not get the level of freedom afforded by others in recent weeks.
Milan have several questions to answer with regard to their form, but they are on the mend, and a big performance will be needed against Juventus. The game could be decided by tight margins, and these are managers not known to give an inch to opponents — there are hallmarks of an entertaining yet cagey draw written all over it.
