Matchday 14 is here for Serie A and on Sunday, Stefano Pioli's AC Milan takes on Sassuolo in what will be a truly strong battle for 3 points. The Rossoneri are first with Napoli as both have 32 points. As for the Neroverdi, they are sitting in the 13th position with 15 points.
Sassuolo have almost always done their best to perform well especially against the bigger Serie A clubs. Now, they are coached by talented young tactician Alessio Dionisi. His side wants to finally win and why not try it against the league leaders. Dionisi side has not grabbed a victory since the Juve game on October 27.
As for Pioli's boys, they want to take the momentum from the great win against Atlético Madrid and translate it into this Serie A fixture. Ibrahimovic's teammates want to turn the page and redeem themselves after a disappointing league result against Fiorentina last Saturday.
AC Milan have some important absences still, like Ante Rebic and Fikayo Tomori who are still out due to injury. We can, however, expect the English defender to be back in the game against Genoa. As for Rebic, more time to evaluate his condition is needed.
Pioli could find consolation with two important recoveries, though, as Mike Maignan is set to return and play as a starter tomorrow. Another one who may start too is Rafael Leao. These are two great quality boosts but one should never underestimate the skills of the other team as they have very good weapons.
In fact, Domenico Berardi is the first star that comes to mind and surely, Pioli and his coaching staff as well as the team have been working on a way to contain him. The defensive department must work as a unit and mark the zones with a lot of attention and concentration. Berardi is very quick and can shoot some really precise and powerful shots. To limit the danger coming from him, Alessio Romagnoli and Simon Kjaer must do their best to keep up with him and keep him out of the penalty box. Berardi, 27, plays on the right so it will be an interesting duel between him and left-back Theo Hernandez.
Berardi, however, is not the only threat to AC Milan's defensive line. In fact, young forward Raspadori will be very key in Dionisi's attacking plans who knows how to dribble and use his agility and smaller body, compared to defenders, in order to move past them and ask for the ball in the space he finds. He can play up front or as a left-winger and Alessandro Florenzi will have to be on top of his form to keep him in check. As a centre-forward, Gianluca Scamacca will be starting and he must be absolutely stopped to make Maignan's first return after injury peaceful. The young attacker scored in Sassuolo's last game against Cagliari which ended in a 2-2 draw.
Stefano Pioli will be hopeful that Brahim Diaz continues his usual role which is being a playmaker who moves forward to support the attacker and move between the lines. On the left flank, Rafael Leao will try to replicate his great form once again and confirm his qualities. The Portuguese left-winger is usually great in one on one situations. He likes to drive forward, skip the full-back and try to get into the box, look for an open teammate or shoot, trying to find a goal for himself.
On the other side, Alexis Saelemaekers is definitely looking to work harder and confirm his qualities that are not doubted by the Italian boss of the Rossoneri squad. The Belgian talent did not perform well in the last few games this season until he showed some improvement and a return to his older version against Atlético Madrid, especially in the second half. Now, he will be looking for a much-awaited goal to boost his confidence, or even an assist.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to start in the attack. Olivier Giroud being out due to injury is unfortunate news for AC Milan as it means playing more minutes for the 40-year-old Swede Veteran, who must be managed well in terms of minutes. Nonetheless, his presence is always important as he weighs a lot on any defence. He can be used as a 'station' in receiving long balls from the defenders or goalkeeper, once he wins the aerial duel, he likes to pass it to the playmaker or the wingers on the sides who will look to attack the depth and space created. Speaking of the attack, maybe the time for Pietro Pellegri has come as he must take his chance while Giroud is absent. Surely the young Italian will have his chance to shine very soon.
Tomorrow, there will also be an important midfield battle. Tiémoué Bakayoko, who is set to start, will have to do all he can in order to stop the 23-year-old talented midfielder Maxime Lopez. The two Frenchmen will go head to head with the former Chelsea man aiming to take his chance tomorrow in order to gain more minutes this season and get some momentum going for himself.
Sassuolo are no walk in the park, they are difficult to play against and their style is very particular to break down. However, Pioli's AC Milan have the right profiles and tools to beat them, without forgetting the presence of the fans who can be a great asset in the San Siro venue, of course.
The guests are likely to play with this lineup:
4-2-3-1: Consigli; Toljan, Chiriches, Ferrari, Rogerio; Lopez, Frattesi; Berardi, Raspadori, Traore; Scamacca.
As for the Rossoneri, here are the probable choices of Pioli:
