Milan are on the cusp of landing their first Scudetto in over a decade, but Atalanta’s visit to San Siro on Sunday threatens to throw a spanner in the works. With two matches left, the Rossoneri hold a two-point lead on reigning champions Inter and have a little margin for error in the season finale.
Sandro Tonali celebrated his 22nd birthday with a match-winning brace at Hellas Verona last time out, helping Milan come from a 1-0 deficit to claim a 3-1 victory. After smashing an 80-point barrier for the first time since the 2011/12 season, the Rossoneri will feel the Scudetto belongs to them, but there’s no room for complacency yet.
As for Atalanta, a comfortable 3-1 at bottom-half Spezia last time out has maintained their hopes of securing European football for next season. Going into the penultimate round of Serie A fixtures, La Dea are level on points with seventh-placed Fiorentina, with a last-gasp push for Europa League qualification also on the cards.
Match Preview
Milan
It has been a sensational calendar year for Milan so far. Stefano Pioli’s side last lost a league outing in January, going unbeaten in 14 Serie A games since (W9, D5), including four consecutive victories in the build-up to this clash. Another win over Atalanta would get the Rossoneri within a single point from conquering Italy’s premier competition for the first time since 2011.
Even a point here will suffice for Milan if Inter lose at Cagliari later this evening. But Pioli’s men will be out to avenge a humiliating 3-0 defeat in this exact fixture last season and stretch their two-game winning league streak over Atalanta for the first time since 1996.
However, Milan are winless in their last seven Serie A home meetings with La Dea (D4, L3) since a 3-0 victory in January 2014. Against this backdrop, they have gone unbeaten in seven home league games (W4, D3) since a shocking 2-1 defeat to Spezia in mid-January, keeping six clean sheets in the process.
Atalanta
Atalanta head into proceedings having gone undefeated in their last four Serie A outings (W2, D2) since a 2-1 home loss to Verona in mid-April. With three of those four games seeing La Dea net 3+ goals, it is safe to say that Gian Piero Gasperini’s men have rekindled their scoring instincts following a troublesome spell.
Moreover, after going winless in back-to-back away matches in all competitions (D1, L1), Atalanta have won their last two Serie A fixtures on the road by the same 3-1 scoreline. Another result may not necessarily hinge on a flying start, as La Dea have bounced back to avoid defeat in 50% of away league games in which they conceded the opener this season (W2, D1, L3).
Despite racking up their most-ever away victories in a single top-flight season (12), Atalanta have ended up on the losing side in their last three Serie A visits to sides starting the matchday in the upper half of the table. It means Gasperini, who has thrown his future in Bergamo into doubt, will have to come up with something special to eke out a result at San Siro.
Milan vs Atalanta Team News
Milan will be without long-term absentee Simon Kjaer, while standout striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic should make the bench despite feeling the pain in one of the recent training sessions.
As for Atalanta, Rafael Toloi and Giuseppe Pezzella remain injured, yet Davide Zappacosta and Aleksey Miranchuk have regained full fitness ahead of this trip.
Milan Potential Starting XI
(4-2-3-1): Mike Maignan; Pierre Kalulu, Theo Hernandez, Fikayo Tomori, Davide Calabria; Ismael Bennacer, Sandro Tonali; Alexis Saelemaekers, Brahim Diaz, Rafael Leao; Olivier Giroud.
Atalanta Potential Starting XI
(3-4-3): Juan Musso; Jose Luis Palomino, Berat Djimsiti, Merih Demiral; Hans Hateboer, Marten de Roon, Remo Freuler, Davide Zappacosta; Teun Koopmeiners, Duvan Zapata, Luis Muriel.