AC Milan
V
Catania
San Siro, Milan
September 19, 2010 – 00:15 IST
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AC Milan, fresh from their win against Auxerre in the Champions League opener, is all set to welcome Catania in the 3rd round of the Italian League, Serie A. The Sicilian side is yet to win a match at the San Siro against Milan and they will be hoping that they can turn around the tables on their fourteenth attempt. Milan have won 9 out of the 13 times Catania has visited the Giuseppe Meazza, the other 4 ended in stalemates.
The Rossoneri certainly look vulnerable in the midfield with Allegri still finding it tough to build the balance of the team. Midfield was their biggest area of concern against Cesena – where Allegri decided to play two defensive midfielders in Ambrosini and Gattuso. Both of them, especially Rino, kept on going forward time and again leaving a lot of spaces in the midfield. Pirlo was playing very deep and hence they clearly lacked creativity. The Diavolo desperately need a box to box midfielder and with Ambrosini and Flamini injured, Allefri would look forward to the services of Kevin Prince Boateng, who was impressive but at times erratic, against Auxerre. His speed definitely helps as Pirlo and Seedorf, despite their vision, don’t have the legs to instil any urgency in the attack.
The backline looks secure with the return of Nesta and Thiago Silva, who have displayed a great partnership in the past. Zambrotta is most likely to start over Bonera as the full back from the right side. Though he has been short on match practice, he was still one of the best performers against the French team this Wednesday.
Milan’s cause of concern is an injury to the “Duck that glides, as if its ice”. Alexandre Pato has managed to injure himself yet again in the beginning of the season. He is reportedly out for 3 weeks, but the medical team does not have to rush his comeback as they now have a backup in Robinho – who will have the chance to improve upon his match fitness. It would be tough to avoid mentioning Ibrahimovic and Ronaldinho as the latter was the architect and the lanky boy was the executor in the victory over Auxerre. Ibrahimovic is getting into his groove very quickly and Catania might have to face his fury in front of the San Siro crowd.
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Catania on the other hand is a very offensive unit, which can be justified by the presence of 12 South Americans, 11 Argentines and 1 Brazillian in their outfit. They possess a very quick counter attack threat to Milan, who have left far too many spaces through the midfield in their previous two matches. The Rossazzurri will look to exploit this weakness in Milan’s coordination. They did beat Parma 2-1 last week but even coach Marco Giampolo is aware that the match could have gone anywhere had it not been for the two penalties by Mascara and Antenucci.
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Catania will hope that Maxi Lopez fires against Milan as the Argentine forward has been in great form since he was signed, scoring 11 goals in 17 appearances for the Sicilian side. Club veteran Giuseppe Mascara, also the captain of the Rossazzurri will have to be on his toes if they are to snatch three points out of this one. Highly unlikely but can’t be ruled out with Milan’s signature lapses of concentration in the recent past.
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Milan’s possible starting Line up:
Abbiati, Zambrotta, Nesta, Silva, Antonini, Boateng, Pirlo, Seedorf, Ronaldinho, Ibrahimovic, Robinho
Catania’s possible starting Line-up:
Andujar, Capuano, Spolli, Silvestre, Potenza, Ledesma, Carboni, Biagianti, Mascara, Ricchiuti, Lopez
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TheHardTackle’s Player to watch out for:
Ronaldinho(Milan)
The Brazilian Maestro was terrible against Cesena but he more than made up for that by his scintillating display in the second half against Auxerre. He was the architect of both the goals scored by Ibrahimovic at the San Siro. Catania being an offensive unit will leave a lot of spaces and Ronaldinho will look forward to create magic between them. Especially with the 2 DM’s probably not playing, Milan will be hoping for some mobility upfront. Catania will have to man mark Dinho if they would want to entertain any hopes iin this match.
TheHardTackle’s Form Guide:
Milan : – – – W L
Catania : – – – L W
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Blast from the Past:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnKgady8vZ4
TheHardTackle’s Prediction:
AC Milan 2-1 Catania