Juventus and AC Milan face a key battle for the second place on the Serie A table as they take on each other in Turin on Saturday.
Juventus will reflect on their season and think where they went wrong after finding themselves in a considerable position to challenge the title and even falling behind AC Milan in the Serie A standings. There were moments around the end of January or the beginning of February when they could have taken the lead in the race and given Inter Milan a run for their money.
Instead, they are now fighting to stay relevant in the race to finish second and are still five points behind AC Milan, with five games to go in the season. The Bianconeri narrowly escaped with a win over Lazio and squeezed through to the Coppa Italia final after an Arkadiusz Milik goal ensured they went ahead on aggregate.
Juventus will now face Atalanta in the decider of the cup final, which gives Massimiliano Allegri the chance to end the dismal season with some silverware. However, the manager will focus on catching AC Milan in the standings. Juventus have a tremendous opportunity to close the gap to just two points as they host the Rossoneri in Turin.
Stefano Pioli will have needed to boost the mood inside the AC Milan dressing room after the events in midweek when Inter Milan clinched the Scudetto at San Siro. Goals from Francesco Acerbi and Marcus Thuram were enough to take three points as Fikayo Tomori’s late strike only proved to be a consolation, as both teams saw red cards at the death.
Following that result, AC Milan are now winless in their last four games across all competitions, a run that has seen them crash out of the UEFA Europa League at the hands of AS Roma. Yet, the Rossoneri have the chance to finish in second in their own hands, and Pioli would either target a win away to Juventus or at least hope for a draw to keep the five-point gap intact.
Milan will also rely on their strong form in Turin of late, as Pioli’s men have won on their last three visits to Juventus after losing their previous nine games in a row at this venue. Hence, Milan come here with every chance to put a seal on that second-placed finish, although Juventus will hope to play party pooper.
Team News & Tactics
Juventus
Massimiliano Allegri will have to make do without Fabio Miretti and Mattia De Sciglio ahead of the clash with AC Milan. There should be no problems for the Juventus boss to choose his starting eleven, which, in current standing, picks itself up.
Federico Gatti, Gleison Bremer, and Danilo are best placed to start in the back-three positions for Juventus, with Andrea Cambiaso and Filip Kostic operating in the wing-back roles.
Adrien Rabiot remains their leading man in the central midfield unit alongside Manuel Locatelli, while Weston McKennie has made himself the third midfield choice along with the duo. Despite Kenan Yildiz giving Federico Chiesa a run for his money midway through the season, Allegri prefers the latter to play alongside Dusan Vlahovic in that front two.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2): Szczesny; Gatti, Bremer, Danilo; Cambiaso, McKennie, Locatelli, Rabiot, Kostic; Vlahovic, Chiesa
AC Milan
Stefano Pioli does have a few key players out with injuries, including Simon Kjaer, Pierre Kalulu, and Tommaso Pobega. Meanwhile, the frenzy at the end of the Milan Derby saw a flurry of dismissals, with Davide Calabria and Theo Hernandez suspended for this one after receiving their marching orders right at the death.
Fikayo Tomori is also suspended for the Juventus clash, meaning Pioli might rely on a partnership between Malick Thiaw and Matteo Gabbia in the heart of his defence. Yunus Musah might be drafted to take Calabria’s right-back position, and with Hernandez absent too, Alessandro Florenzi might shift to left-back.
Ismael Bennacer and Tijjani Reijnders will occupy the central midfield berths with no changes to the frontline. Rafael Leao will start on the left, with Christian Pulisic occupying the right flank. Ruben Loftus-Cheek will continue in the No.10 role, while Olivier Giroud will lead the line for Milan.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Maignan; Musah, Thiaw, Gabbia, Florenzi; Bennacer, Reijnders; Pulisic, Loftus-Cheek, Leao; Giroud
Key Stats
- Juventus have lost only once in their last 16 home games.
- Juventus are five points behind AC Milan in the standings with five games to go.
- Juventus have only two victories in their last 12 Serie A games.
- There have been over 2.5 goals scored in AC Milan’s last five games in Serie A.
- AC Milan are undefeated in their last five away matches against Juventus in all competitions.
Player to Watch
Dusan Vlahovic
The Serb has a big summer ahead, with suggestions that he might look to leave Juventus should Massimiliano Allegri bid his farewell. It will be exciting if the Bianconeri decide to part ways with their prolific marksman, although things could still change.
Should Vlahovic build a reputation between now and the end of the season, things might change in the background for him. The Serbian international can perform strongly against AC Milan to help Juventus close the gap for that second spot on the table behind Inter Milan.
Prediction
Juventus 1-1 AC Milan
Juventus will come into this clash under more pressure than AC Milan to clinch the second spot on the table, with the Bianconeri still five points behind the Rossoneri. Hence, things may be outside their hands, considering Massimiliano Allegri will continue with a pragmatic approach rather than attack from the get-go.
AC Milan, on the other hand, may have a slight advantage with their points gap, and Stefano Pioli might prefer to keep the gap intact rather than rushing to increase it. Hence, the visitors may opt for a pragmatic approach and look for a draw, as the two teams will likely share the spoils in Turin on Saturday.