Serie A Preview: AC Milan v Juventus
Milan crashed Lazio’s party at the weekend, but can they return the favor and stall the Juventus train to the title?
Date – Tuesday July 7th, 2020; Kick-Off – 22:45 Mecca; Channel – 1 HD
Milan have been in impressive form since the league's restart last month, beating Lecce, Roma and Lazio, the latter – an impressive 3-0 win at the Stadio Olimpico.
As it stands, Stefano Pioli’s side is sixth in the table, just two points behind fifth-placed Roma and Napoli in 6th. Champions League qualification is out of sight, but UEFA Europa League qualification must be the target for a club who opted out of their European tournament commitments this seasons due to FFP punishments.
Despite the recent good form, the visit of Juventus has not gone well for Milan in previous years. They have not beaten Juve in Serie A since October 2016, losing the last six meetings between the two sides.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is back and scored at the weekend, but he will likely drop to the bench with Ante Rebic primed to take his place. However, if Hakan Calhanoglu fails a late fitness test, then Zlatan may be needed against his former club.
AC Milan Predicted Team
Donnarumma; Conti, Kjaer, Romagnoli, Hernandez; Kessie, Bennacer; Saelemaekers, Paqueta, Calhanoglu; Rebic
Cristiano Ronaldo has now netted 25 times in 26 Serie A appearances during the 2019-20 campaign, including four in the team's four matches since returning to league action last month. It made him the first Juve player to reach 25 league goals in nearly 60 years.
Maurizio Sarri’s side have won each of their last seven in Italy's top-flight, and as mentioned, currently sit seven points clear of second-placed Lazio at the top of the table, which is a big advantage at this stage.
It is hard to see where Juventus will drop points, but the Old Lady’s three league defeats this season have all come away from home.
Juventus Predicted Team
Szczesny; Cuadrado, De Ligt, Bonucci, Danilo; Rabiot, Pjanic, Bentancur; Ronaldo, Dybala, Bernardeschi