I’m on the verge of just going through the motions. I mean, it feels like that’s what Allegri is doing. Ok, maybe that’s not entirely true but the fact that he keeps rolling out the same formation and continues to play his two best attackers out of position is mindboggling. What’s it going to take for him to see that what he’s doing is leaving points on the pitch. Sigh…my biggest concerns about Allegri have been and continue to show their ugly heads.
MATCHDAY:
LAST FIVE
MILAN: DLWWL
TORINO: LLWLW
FORMATIONS
MILAN (3-5-2) *Predicted*: Maignan (C); Tomori, De Winter, Pavlović; Saelemaekers, Fofana, Modrić, Rabiot, Bartesaghi; Pulisic, Leão
TORINO (3-4-1-2) *Predicted*: Paleari; Coco, Ismajli, Ebosse; Pedersen, Prati, Gineitis, Obrador; Vlasic; Simeone, Adams
TIME/LOCATION
TIME: 1pm EST/5pm GMT
PLACE: San Siro, Milano
WHERE TO WATCH:
Paramount+ and FuboTV here in the US of Aye (Spanish broadcast on Fox Deportes in the US); FuboTV and TLN for Canada; TNT in the UK (maybe?); ESPN for Mexico; DAZN for Germany, Austria, Switzerland; a website called GXR for our friends in India; and illegal streams that support dictators and oligarchs everywhere.
*Let us know if this needs updating or if you have additional broadcasters to add*
WHAT TO WATCH FOR:
Same story last game. No need to say a whole lot. Milan has had a bit more purpose with the ball when playing non-top 6 teams, which is good and welcomed, but the formation is still holding the team back. In the case of this last game vs Lazio, Lazio packed it in and packed it in tight in their final third and rather than counter that with wide play and/or a true #9, Milan kept trying to work their way through that parked bus and we all saw the result. So for me this was another example of Allegri letting down his team by failing to put them in the best possible situation.
For today, expect another challenging day as these games vs smaller sides have been all season. This is not the dentist chair Torino of the last 10 years or so, and in fact are second to last in goals conceded this season. While Milan could in-theory take advantage of this, it would almost certainly require Allegri to actually go for the throat and put the game to bed early. We’ve seen the occasional goal explosion from Milan this season but not enough to warrant a pattern, so betting for that would be a reach. Now, rumor is that Leão tweaked the same injury to his thigh that he hurt against Bari (the same injury that has zapped his speed all season) and is out for this game, so maybe Allegri gets bailed out and has his hand forced to play Füllkrug along with Pulisic…but I’m not holding my breath.
In other Milan news, Estupiñan is rumored to head back to the bench. Important lesson there to not keep starting someone when the other guy is better despite a timely goal in a big game. Rabiot is also back although his absence wasn’t the main reason for the dropped points last game. Other than that, cut-copy-paste regarding the lineup.
PREDICTION TIME:
Well their two game winning…streak?…ended so they’re primed to win two more games and then drop points. It’s the Allegri way! So bet on them taking all 3 points but DO NOT bet on them getting back in the Scudetto race. That sh*t is cooked.
Forza Milan
gillis