Share

Torino-Juve: Thiago Motta plays his season in the derby. Milan-Cagliari: Conceicao chases the Champions League

In his first Turin derby, Thiago Motta is playing it all: either he wins or his bench will start to falter after the disappointing results achieved so far by his Juve. In Milan, Conceicao will instead try to exploit the Super Cup effect to beat Cagliari and chase a place in the Champions League

Torino-Juve: Thiago Motta plays his season in the derby. Milan-Cagliari: Conceicao chases the Champions League

Looking for a place in Champions. Juventus e Milan, after the Super Cup interlude, they return to deal with the championship, looking for a place in the next Europe that counts. This is, at the moment, the only real objective for both, too far from the top to dream of anything more, so much so that even fourth place is far from certain. Lazio draw against Como in yesterday's advance (1-1, goals by Dia and Cutrone) imposes on Thiago Motta e Conceiçao to beat Torino (18 pm) e Cagliari (20:45), because if it is true that the points gap is the result of recoveries (one for Juve, even two for Milan), it is also true that the time for gifts is over: to get into the Champions League we need to start running, starting today. To complete a Saturday of very high tension also Udinese-Atalanta (15pm, Dazn), with Gasperini's Goddess called to win both to catch up with the Napoli to respond to the post-Super Cup criticism.

Turin – Juventus (18pm, Dazn)

The most intriguing match of the Saturday is undoubtedly the one in Turin, where the 258th edition of the Turin derby will take place (188th in the championship). For both teams it is a very delicate challenge and the traditional teasing, this time, has little to do with it: Juventus absolutely needs to find victory again after the draw with Fiorentina and the bad defeat against Milan, Toro to end a derby drought that has lasted since the distant 2015. Both Thiago Motta and Vanoli have pressing needs in the standings, but it is clear that the speech is especially valid for the former, now detached from the scudetto train and also out of the train that leads to the next Champions League. The Juventus coach, who arrived in the summer amidst collective enthusiasm, seems to have lost the touch seen in Bologna, so much so that many believe him to be guilty of the current results. Also in the dock is Joints, author of an expensive and, at least so far, unprofitable market (the more than 100 million invested in Douglas Luiz, a real desaparecido, and Koopmeiners, so far rather disappointing, weigh heavily), but the coach, as we know, is always the first to be discussed when results are lacking, especially if he is the protagonist of choices that are at the very least questionable. The injury emergency, then, shows no sign of abating and Juve, for the umpteenth time, will have to invent something in attack, in light of the unavailability of Vlahovic and Conceiçao; while waiting for help from the market (Kolo Muani of PSG has become the first target), the right recipe must be found with the available ingredients, perhaps avoiding declarations like those pre-Super Cup ("winning is not an obsession"), decidedly unwelcome by a crowd that has always (and rightly) been demanding.

Thiago Motta: “We have only lost two games this season, but we need continuity”

“It will be a complicated derby, like the first leg – he explained Thiago Motta -. We can't wait to get on the pitch and win, in 26 games we've only lost twice, the squad is young, beyond a few too many draws and a few injuries that have never been an excuse. Our need is to commit ourselves in every training session to achieve victory, we want to recover a few points in the league and continue in the Champions League and Coppa Italia. We've played games in which we've shown great character, against Milan we had difficulty reacting, other times we've done it and this means that the team is capable of it and can still improve. We concede more goals because we make mistakes, as well as because of the value of the opponent: we need to make fewer, create more and finish better to try to win, we feel the need to find continuity. The market? At the moment we only need to think about the derby, we need to stay fully focused and get back to winning”.

Turin – Juventus, the probable lineups

Torino (4-2-3-1): Milinkovic-Savic; Vojvoda, Maripan, Coco, Sosa; Ricci, Linetty; Lazaro, Vlasic, Karamoh; Adams

On the bench: Paleari, Masina, Donnarumma, Walukiewicz, Pedersen, Gineitis, Ilic, Sanabria, Bayeye, Dembelé, Njie, Tameze, Balcot, Ciammaglichella

Coach: Vanoli

Unavailable: Zapata, Schuurs, Savva, Ilkhan

Disqualified: none

Juventus (4-2-3-1): Di Gregorio; Savona, Gatti, Kalulu, McKennie; Douglas Luiz, Thuram; Yildiz, Koopmeiners, Mbangula; Nico Gonzalez

On the bench: Perin, Pinsoglio, Cambiaso, Rouhi, Fagioli, Adzic, Weah

Coach: Thiago Motta

Unavailable: Milik, Bremer, Cabal, Conceicao, Vlahovic

Disqualified: Locatelli

Milan – Cagliari (20pm, Dazn and Sky)

The Serie A Saturday will be closed by Milan e Cagliari, expected from the postponed match at San Siro. The Rossoneri return to play in their stadium less than two weeks after the last time, but many things have changed since that draw with Roma. First of all the coach, with Sergio Conceicao jumped into the saddle in place of Fonseca, and then the Super Cup won against Juventus and Inter, at the end of two comebacks (especially the one in the derby final) destined to remain in the annals. The Milan fans had "saved" the team amidst whistles and protests, now they find a group regenerated by the trip to Arabia and, above all, by the Conceiçao treatment. The Portuguese has had a devastating impact (in a positive sense, of course) on the environment, but he too knows that the bulk of the work still needs to be done. The Super Cup has brought undoubted benefits, but the real goal is to climb back up the ladder in the league to earn a place in the next Champions League (as well as reaching the eighth finals in the current one, but we'll talk about that in a couple of weeks). The next two with Cagliari and Como (recovery of the 19th matchday) must be won at all costs, to then present themselves again in front of Juve and play it on equal terms: if this were not the case, the Riyadh effect would risk fading and Conceiçao, as the experienced coach he is, absolutely does not want that to happen. In front of them will be a Cagliari reassured by the success of Monza and determined to play its cards, just like in the 3-3 of last November 9th. Even then, Milan were coming from a great victory (3-1 in Madrid), yet they were unable to ride the wave, ending up being overwhelmed: the Rossoneri fans hope that this time it will be different, because repeating the same mistake, more than diabolical, would be downright unforgivable.

Conceiçao: “If someone has a full stomach for the Super Cup, they can’t be here”

“I think that those who believe that winning a Super Cup is enough cannot work at Milan – he underlined Conceiçao -. It's true, we enjoyed it and deserved it, but we are 17 points from the top of the table. A club that has won 19 titles and 7 Champions Leagues cannot have a full stomach with the Super Cup. So let's focus on Cagliari: we must win and convince, the Super Cup is the past. The day after Riad I spoke about Real Madrid-Milan and the comparison with Cagliari-Milan. Certain attitudes are not good, you must not fall, but continue on the good things done. Every coach has his ideas and his working methods, then it is the result that commands. It's not that I have the magic formula, because if the results don't come, the one who pays is the coach. Here we have a great staff, when a player raises his hand three of them come running and maybe he was just saying hello... We are too pampered. Hernandez and Leao's reaction? I know how things go having been a footballer, but then you have to demonstrate your way of working that the boys must believe in. The market? The management tried to talk to me about this topic, but the timing was wrong because we had important games… Rashford? He is a good player, like many others: we will see”.

Milan – Cagliari, the probable lineups

Milan (4-2-3-1): Maignan; Calabria, Tomori, Thiaw, Hernandez; Musah, Fofana; Pulisic, Reijnders, Leao; Morata

On the bench: Sportiello, Torriani, Gabbia, Pavlovic, Bartesaghi, Terracciano, Jimenez, Bennacer, Zeroli, Abraham, Jovic, Camarda

Coach: Fonseca

Unavailable: Florenzi, Chukwueze, Loftus-Cheek

Suspended: Emerson Royal

Cagliari (4-2-3-1): Caprile; Zappa, Palomino, Luperto, Obert; Makoumbou, Adopo; Zortea, Gaetano, Augello; Piccoli

On the bench: Sherri, Azzi, Prati, Wieteska, Marin, Kingstone, Deiola, Wieteska, Felici, Jankto, Lapadula, Viola, Pavoletti

Coach: Nicola

Unavailable: Luvumbo, Mina, Ciocci

Disqualified: None

comments