All in search of Milan. The Rossoneri are back on the pitch three days after the bad defeat against Lille, this time against Verona in the postponement of the San Siro (20.45 pm). There will be many who hope that Juric, after stopping Juventus, will repeat himself this time too, partly because this is the fate of those who lead the standings, largely due to the knockout on Thursday, too heavy to go unnoticed. The 0-3 with the French has turned on more than one alarm bell around Milan, who already appeared less brilliant in the match in Udine, won thanks to a spell by Ibrahimovic. And since the Swede appeared subdued in the Europa League, doubts about the Rossoneri's extreme dependence on their number 11 started to circulate again, invigorating all pursuers.
“Something we didn't want happened on Thursday, we weren't able to express ourselves in the best possible way – admitted Pioli -. Against a strong, quality opponent, we lowered the level and paid dearly, but now we have to put in a high-level, compact and solid performance: we need a match from Milan". True, also because Verona will be up against us in great form, capable of cornering almost all the teams we have met so far: not the best possible client to get up easily, but certainly a good incentive to do so. Pioli, after the Cup turnover, will return to the best possible 4-2-3-1, therefore Donnarumma in goal, Calabria, Kjaer, Romagnoli and Hernandez in defense, Bennacer and Kessie in midfield, Saelemaekers, Calhanoglu and Leao in the frontline, Ibrahimovic in attack.
Ordinance game system also for Juric, who will respond with Silvestri between the posts, Ceccherini, Lovato and Magnani in the back department, Lazovic, Tameze, Ilic and Dimarco in the midfield, Barak and Zaccagni behind the lone striker Kalinic. Among the many hoping for a misstep by Milan there are also Naples and Rome, dealing respectively with the away matches in Bologna (18pm) and Genoa (15pm). Gattuso, fresh from the defeat against Sassuolo and from the (unconvincing, by his own admission) victory against Rijeka, needs a success, but Mihajlovic also needs points: in short, the Dall'Ara match promises to be very interesting. all the more because two teams that are anything but renouncing face each other. Napoli had started very strong, but then came some missteps that undermined his self-esteem, giving rise to some doubts about his real consistency, as well as his candidacy for the championship.
We need a convincing answer starting today, on a traditionally complicated pitch, and Gattuso will try to give it by relying on his usual 4-2-3-1 with Ospina in goal, Hysaj, Manolas, Koulibaly and Mario Rui in defense, Fabian Ruiz and Bakayoko in midfield, Lozano, Mertens and Insigne in the frontline, Osimhen in attack. The same game system also for Mihajlovic, who will respond with Skorupski between the posts, De Silvestri, Danilo, Tomiyasu and Denswil in the back, Schouten and Dominguez in the midfield, Orsolini, Soriano and Barrow behind the lone striker Palacio. It is also an important Sunday for Roma: Marassi's away game, in fact, has all the air of sliding doors, capable of projecting the team towards unimaginable goals until a few weeks ago, or of leaving it in limbo in the middle zone of the championship.
But the Giallorossi, still unbeaten this season (the 0-3 draw in Verona cannot be attributed to the coach and players, furthermore tomorrow there will be an appeal), have all the cards to beat Genoa, who appeared anything but irresistible in this beginning, and forcefully enter the top ranking. “For the moment we have done well, but the past is not important if we cannot build the future – glossed over Fonseca -. The future is here and it doesn't seem right to talk only about this period, we must understand that we are embarking on a good path, but we must continue like this".
The coach, already burned last year by a not very continuous team, prefers to keep a low profile, also because today he will have to do without Dzeko, who tested positive for Covid. A very heavy absence, which however will have to be filled in the best possible way by Borja Mayoral, who has already unlocked himself on Thursday in the Europa League and by Mkhitaryan, still dry in the league. The Giallorossi 3-4-2-1 will see Mirante in goal, Mancini, Smalling and Kumbulla in defense, Bruno Peres, Pellegrini, Veretout and Spinazzola in midfield, Pedro and Mkhitaryan in the frontline, Mayoral in attack. Maran will attempt the coup with a 4-3-2-1 with Perin in goal, Biraschi, Goldaniga, Masiello and Criscito in the back, Rovella, Badelj and Behrami in the midfield, Pandev and Parigini behind the lone striker Scamacca.
