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PARMA
Guiseppe Meazza
February 12, 2011, 17:00 GMT
Milan enters the most delicate part of their season where the upcoming six matches will decide their fate for any silverware this season. The first of those six matches is against Parma, followed by Champions League home fixture against Spurs. A tricky away fixture to Chievo and then two potential league deciders in the form of Napoli and Juventus are about to rain down on the Rossoneri. If that was not enough, the last of the six matches involve the return leg fixture against Spurs at White Hart Lane.
Parma is on a three match winless streak. The signing of Amauri in the winter transfer window has definitely bolstered their attack and his opening goal against Fiorentina last weekend will definitely boost his confidence.
Team news and tactical brief
AC Milan
Milan has dropped eight points in the last six matches, which has helped the others to catch up on them. “This is the most delicate stage of the season. From now on, results will heavily influence the race for the league title as all three competitions get into their final phases. Our rivals could take advantage of any our mistake, but this shouldn’t make us worried, but even more focused” – as said by coach Allegri in a recent interview. In the last match against Genoa, Pato was on target, opening the scoring but Milan failed to capitalize on that and eventually Genoa managed to slug out a draw. Against Parma, it will be a whole new set-up because Parma is fast and well-organized team, besides being technically gifted too. With the match against Spurs coming up next Tuesday, it is time to rest Ibrahimovic and some key players. The return of Nesta and Pirlo from injury is a truly positive sign and Nesta will feature against Parma. According to Allegri, Cassano is not 100% match-fit and will require some more time to be match-fit to play for the whole 90 minutes. Merkel and Emanuelson will start from the bench
Despite playing for 90 minutes for Holland, Van Bommel would feature in the opening line-up and will play just in front of the defense. Along with him, Gattuso and Flamini would comprise of the midfield three. In defense, the pairing of Nesta and Silva will definitely give the Rossoneri a thing to cheer about. Oddo and Antonini would be playing as full-backs with the possibility of Emanuelson coming on in the second half replacing Antonini. Ibrahimovic would be rested and the forward line would comprise of Pato and Cassano. Robinho would slot in just behind the two strikers, as he has been almost throughout the season. The 4-3-1-2 formation looks likely.
Probable starting Line-up: Abbiati(GK), Antonini, Oddo, Nesta, Silva, Gattuso, Van Bommel, Flamini, Pato, Cassano, Robinho
Parma
Gialloblu coach Pasquale Marino in his pre-match conference spoke about the difficult game they are about to play against the current league leaders. “We are in the right condition to do well against tough opponents like the league leaders. It will be a difficult game. If we’ll play sitting back like we did against Milan in the autumn, we’ll be in for some suffering. We need to play as we know and by doing so we’ll have a chance. I’d be glad to see my team play as it did against Inter at the San Siro, apart from the result, or as we did at the Olympic Stadium in Turin“. Parma is not exactly in the form of their season, having collected their first point in three games in last weekend’s 1-1 draw against Fiorentina. They presently are on 16th place, just 4 points clear of the “R-zone”. In their last away win, Parma shocked Juventus 4-1 at the start of this year. A 4-3-3 formation is on the cards with Zaccardo, Paci, Lucarelli and Gobbi forming the defense in front of Mirante. The onus of creating chances for the strikers will lie on the midfield trio of Candreva, Dzemaili and Galloppa. Angelo, Amauri and Giovincio complete the strike-force. The visitors will be without midfielder Stefano Morrone, who serves a one-match ban.
Probable starting Line-up: Mirante (GK), Zaccardo, Paci, Lucarelli, Gobbi, Candreva, Dzemaili, Galloppa, Angelo, Amauri, Giovincio
Key Facts
1. Parma has won only twice away from home so far this season.
2. Ibrahimovic is Milan’s leading goal-scorer till now with 13 strikes so far.
3. In their last 6 matches, Milan has drawn 4 times.
TheHardTackle’s PLAYER TO WATCH OUT FOR
Pato(AC Milan): Scoring for Milan, scoring for Brazil, scoring for Milan? Every Rossoneri hopes that the pattern is repeated. With Cassano and Robinho backing him up, the “Duck” would be running around the Parma defense in circles.
TheHardTackle’s PREDICTION
AC Milan 2 – 1 Parma
A tricky match and a potential league decider as well. Neither of the team will sit back and relax, knowing very well the opposition’s penchant for goals.
TheHardTackle’s BLAST FROM THE PAST
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