Sunday’s Serie A action caps off with a heavyweight encounter between eternal rivals Milan and Juventus at the Stadio San Siro. Let’s look at our match preview for this contest.
Christian Pulisic turned on a hero mode to inspire Milan to a dramatic 1-0 win at Genoa before the international break. Unbelievable late scenes at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris saw both goalkeepers sent off, with Olivier Giroud taking the gloves after Mike Maignan’s expulsion. But Stefano Pioli’s men weathered the storm, posting their fourth consecutive league victory.
Milan came into this round as the Serie A leaders. However, after a thumping 3-0 triumph at Torino on Saturday night, Inter leapfrogged them at the summit, moving one point clear at the top of the table. Rossoneri will be out to reclaim their place at the top of the tree, but they’ll need to navigate a formidable challenge. High-flying Juventus are about to touch down in the fashion capital.
Despite missing the likes of Dusan Vlahovic and Federico Chiesa, Massimiliano Allegri’s side pulled off a 2-0 statement win over cross-city rivals Torino last time out. The morale-boosting Derby della Mole success marked Juventus’ third successive Serie A game without losing (W2, D1), firing them fourth in the standings, only four points below Milan.
With Vlahovic already returning to the fold and Chiesa likely to rejoin the group after sitting out the international break, optimism is flowing around the Juventus camp. Allegri’s men would be wise not to get ahead of themselves, considering their recent struggles in this fixture. Indeed, Bianconeri lost both matches against Milan in Serie A last season ‘to nil.’
Match Preview
Milan
San Siro has been an unbreakable fortress this season, with Milan racking up three wins and a draw across their four competitive home outings. Defensive solidity has been crucial to Rossoneri’s splendid home form, as they registered three shutouts in those matches, holding Lazio, Hellas Verona, and Newcastle United at bay.
Considering they’ve fended off Juventus in their last three league showdowns, Milan can be confident about maintaining their phenomenal defensive record despite missing two defensive pillars. In addition to Maignan, Pioli lost his vice-captain Theo Hernandez to suspension in that nervy contest in Genoa.
That shouldn’t slow Milan down as they bid to post seven consecutive home victories in Serie A for the first time since 2013.
Player to Watch: Olivier Giroud
After scoring four goals in his first three Serie A appearances in 2023/24, Giroud has drawn a blank in his last four. However, the veteran striker excelled against Juventus in 2022/23, tallying a goal and an assist in two matches against Bianconeri.
Juventus
With 17 points from seven games, Juventus are enjoying their best Serie A start in four years. But their chances of increasing that tally are not significant. They’ve gone winless across their last five league meetings with Milan (D2, L3), not to mention failed to find the net four times in this run.
Taking a trip outside the Allianz Stadium doesn’t inspire much confidence either. Since back-to-back wins over bottom-half sides Udinese and Empoli at the start of the new campaign, Juventus have endured a dip in form on the road. They first lost 4-2 at Sassuolo before barely salvaging a 0-0 draw at Atalanta.
On top of their on-field problems on hostile turf, Juventus must deal with ever-growing off-field issues. Nicolo Fagioli has found himself at the center of the illegal betting scandal, receiving a seven-month ban from football.
Player to Watch: Moise Kean
Since Allegri will unlikely risk using Chiesa from the start, Kean will probably partner up with Vlahovic in the front third. Interestingly, five of the Italian forward’s last six goals were match openers, which could make him an early threat.
Team News
In addition to suspended Maignan and Hernandez, Milan will be without Ismael Bennacer, Mattia Caldara, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, and Samuel Chukwueze. All of them are struggling with injuries.
As for Juventus, Fagioli is not the only player whose career is at risk. Paul Pogba is also under the microscope after failing a drug test. Alex Sandro, Danilo, and Mattia De Sciglio are on the sidelines with physical problems.
Milan vs Juventus Potential Lineups
Milan (4-3-3): Antonio Mirante; Davide Calabria, Fikayo Tomori, Malick Thiaw, Alessandro Florenzi; Yunus Musah, Yacine Adli, Tijjani Reijnders; Christian Pulisic, Olivier Giroud, Rafael Leao.
Juventus (3-5-2): Wojciech Szczesny; Federico Gatti, Gleison Bremer, Daniele Rugani; Weston McKennie, Fabio Miretti, Manuel Locatelli, Adrien Rabiot, Filip Kostic; Moise Kean, Dusan Vlahovic.
Milan vs Juventus Prediction
Without several significant first-team stars, Milan could be vulnerable on Sunday night. But Juventus’ form woes on the road are long-standing, and they’ve failed to catch a break against Rossoneri down the years.
Therefore, we expect a share of the spoils.
Prediction: Draw
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