In this morning's print edition, Il Giornale, shared the following headline ahead of AC Milan's match in the Netherlands against Feyenoord:
"Milan, European purgatory begins with an incomplete squad."
Because of the heavy defeat two weeks ago in Zagreb against Dinamo, the Rossoneri will be forced to go through the playoffs to secure a spot in the Champions League round of 16.
Tonight, the first leg against Feyenoord is scheduled in Rotterdam, a match the Rossoneri team enters with several absentees: suspended Musah, injured Emerson Royal, Florenzi, and Loftus-Cheek, as well as players not included in the UEFA list, namely Jimenez, Sottil, Bondo, and Jovic.
The newspaper writes further:
"Sergio Conceiçao has only 17 outfield players available, a strong concentration of quality in attack and limited numbers in midfield. And this is where the Portuguese coach's dilemma arises: focus on the 4-2-fantasy of the new year (Pulisic, Joao Felix, Leao, and Gimenez all together) or try to keep a joker on the bench (Joao Felix, who played almost the entire match against Empoli) to have some in-game solutions (with Terracciano in midfield)."
