AC Milan will be desperate to bounce back to winning ways when they welcome Hellas Verona to San Siro on Saturday.
Serie A resumes this week with Matchday 5 of the 2023/24 season. The latest round of fixtures gets underway with two games on Friday. Meanwhile, the action on Saturday will get underway at San Siro, where AC Milan will welcome Hellas Verona.
AC Milan began the 2023/24 season with a bang, winning the first three games to climb to the top of the Serie A table. But they suffered a 5-1 hammering at the hands of Inter Milan last weekend to drop to third in the standings. The Rossoneri followed that up with a goalless draw against Newcastle United earlier this week.
On the other hand, Hellas Verna might have a much better 2023/24 campaign compared to last term. The Yellow and Blues retained their Serie A status by the skin of their teeth after spending most of the season in the relegation zone. But Marco Baroni’s charges have already won two games in 2023/24 to climb to ninth on the table.
The corresponding fixture last season saw AC Milan hand Hellas Verona a 3-1 defeat, with Rafael Leao being the match-winner. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
AC Milan
Eyes on the next one 🔜 #MilanVerona#SempreMilan
Brought to you by @play_eFootball pic.twitter.com/QlLiqBqNYm— AC Milan (@acmilan) September 21, 2023
Stefano Pioli has a new injury concern hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. Against Hellas Verona on Sunday, the AC Milan manager might be without as many as five first-team players.
Mike Maignan is the latest absentee, with the first-choice goalkeeper picking up a thigh injury. The French international has joined Mattia Caldara (ankle), Pierre Kalulu (muscle injury), Ismael Bennacer (knee), and Ruben Loftus-Cheek (muscular) on the sidelines.
Maignan’s absence means Marco Sportiello will deputise between the sticks, with AC Milan lining up in a 4-3-3 formation in front of him. The rest of the starting eleven should see some shuffles, with Alessandro Florenzi replacing Theo Hernandez to join Davide Calabria, Malick Thiaw, and Fikayo Tomori in the defensive unit.
Loftus-Cheek’s absence will provide an opportunity for Yunus Musah, while Tijjani Reijnders will come in for Tommaso Pobega. The duo will join Rade Krunic in the middle of the park, with the three players looking to keep things tight in the middle of the park.
Christian Pulisic will look to reclaim the right-wing berth on Saturday and make the position his own. Meanwhile, Noah Okafor will start in place of Olivier Giroud as the central striker. Finally, Rafael Leao will complete the numbers in the final third.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Sportiello; Calabria, Thiaw, Tomori, Florenzi; Musah, Krunic, Reijnders; Pulisic, Okafor, Leao
Hellas Verona
Like his counterpart in the AC Milan dugout, Marco Baroni has a few pressing issues to deal with ahead of the trip to San Siro. The Hellas Verona manager will be without four first-team players on Saturday.
Josh Doig (ankle), Jayden Braaf (physical discomfort), Thomas Henry (knee), and Jackson Tchatchoua (match fitness) are unavailable to take on AC Milan. Otherwise, Baroni will have a full-strength squad this weekend.
Lorenzo Montipo is the automatic pick between the sticks, and Hellas Verona will line up in a 3-4-2-1 formation in front of him. Giangiacomo Magnani, Isak Hien, and Pawel Dawidowicz will be the three centre-backs. Meanwhile, Davide Faraoni and Darko Lazovic should be the two wing-backs.
As for the midfield unit, Ondrej Duda and Martin Hongla, with the former providing the creative impetus from the middle of the park. Finally, Milan Djuric should spearhead the Hellas Verona attack against AC Milan, with Cyril Ngonge and Michael Folorunsho supporting him from central areas.
Probale Lineup (3-4-2-1): Montipo; Magnani, Hien, Dawidowicz; Faraoni, Hongla, Duda, Lazovic; Ngonge, Folorunsho; Djuric
Key Stats
- AC Milan have won their last five Serie A matches against Hellas Verona, always scoring at least two goals. That is their longest winning streak against the Gialloblu in the top flight.
- Among the teams against whom AC Milan are unbeaten in Serie A home games, Hellas Verona are the club against whom they have played the most matches at San Siro in the competition (31 – W18 D13).
- Vicenza was the last team to win at San Siro against AC Milan in Serie A on September 28, 1997.
- Following the defeat to Inter Milan, AC Milan can lose back-to-back league matches for the first time since the start of February 2023. Furthermore, they have conceded at least once in their last three Serie A games.
- Hellas Verona managed seven points in four Serie A games this season. In the era of three points for a win, they have collected at least seven points in their first four matches only twice: eight in 2014/15 and seven in 2020/21.
Player to Watch
Christia Pulisic
Pulisic started the 2023/24 season with a bang, suggesting Chelsea might have made a mistake not trusting him. But Samuel Chukwueze replaced him against Newcastle United, meaning his position is under threat. So, the game against Hellas Verona is crucial for him to cement his position.
With Rafael Leao blowing hot and cold, Pulisic can make a case to become the first name in the offensive unit. But he needs to explode with his output in the final third to do that. Another match-winning performance can get him closer to that objective this weekend.
Prediction
AC Milan 2-1 Hellas Verona
AC Milan might have failed to win the last two games, but they have an impeccable recent record against Hellas Verona. In addition, they have usually blown the Gialloblu out of the water at San Siro, meaning the odds will be stacked in their favour.
However, the visitors have started the season well, considering how poor they were in the 2022/23 campaign. So, they will give the hosts a run for their money. But it might not be enough to snare even one point. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-1 win for Stefano Pioli and his charges.
