Monza vs AC Milan: Match Preview & Prediction
AC Milan are back in Serie A action on Saturday night as they make the short trip to face Monza, looking to right the wrongs from earlier in the week.
The defeat against Napoli on Tuesday night has once again thrust Milan into a state of crisis, at least in the eyes of the media. They have now lost five of their 12 games under Paulo Fonseca across all competitions, and are 11 points behind the leaders in the league.
Paulo Fonseca did not do a pre-match press conference for reasons that remain unknown, but even without being asked any difficult questions he must know the pressure he is under to deliver results quickly.
AC Milan Team News
There was reportedly a meeting between Fonseca and his superiors after the defeat against Napoli. As Calciomercato.com reported, what emerged is that the coach will be evaluated at the next international break, so may potentially have a few games to save his job.
In terms of injury news, there are some long-term absentees that are still not available for selection in Alessandro Florenzi, Ismael Bennacer and Marco Sportiello, each of whom are still recovering from surgery.
Matteo Gabbia, on the other hand, is still on the sidelines with a calf problem. It was expected that he would miss the Monza game, and now all attention is on whether he can return against Real Madrid or if he might be done until the next international break.
Now we move on to the good news. First of all, Luka Jovic and Davide Calabria did the full training session with the rest of the squad which means they will almost certainly be available at the weekend.
In addition to that, Tammy Abraham ‘s recovery continues after the shoulder problem (presumably a dislocation) he suffered in the 1-0 victory against Udinese. The Englishman is also getting closer to returning to the field, but will not be available for this game.
Most importantly, Theo Hernandez and Tijjani Reijnders have served their suspensions and will be available again, while Christian Pulisic has fully recovered from the flu that made him sit on the bench from minute on of the Napoli loss.
Looking to the squad, there are no surprises in the fact that Mike Maignan will start from the first minute. However, a surprise arrives in the form of Filippo Terracciano at right-back, instead of Calabria or Emerson Royal. Malick Thiaw should keep his position in central defence, and the returning duo of Fikayo Tomori and Theo Hernandez make up the defensive line.
In midfield, Fonseca reverts to a more familiar partnership, which sees Youssouf Fofana being partnered by the returning Reijnders, which is the favoured midfield duo for the Portuguese head coach.
The front line also sees some change, as Samuel Chukwueze and Noah Okafor will flank the returning Pulisic. Rafael Leao had been heavily reported to be returning to the starting line-up but, there appears to have been a U-turn. There are no shocks provided by Alvaro Morata’s starting spot, though.
Monza Team News
It would be fair to say that Monza built on their first campaign in Serie A last season as they finished 12th, thus comfortably avoiding relegation and asserting themselves as a mid-table side after coming 11th in 2022-23.
However, the Biancorossi were caught up in the coaching merry-go-round that occurred over the summer. Thiago Motta left Bologna for Juventus, Vincenzo Italiano replaced him, and then Raffaele Palladino left Monza for La Viola.
Adriano Galliani turned to someone he knows very well from his days with Milan in Alessandro Nesta, who thus got his first Serie A coaching gig after spells with Perugia, Frosinone and Reggiana.
Monza spent just €3m in the summer, and that was on Georgios Kyriakopoulos from relegated Sassuolo. The other additions were Daniel Maldini, Stefano Sensi and Omari Fosun on frees, plus Stefano Turati, Alessandro Bianco and Samuel Pizzignacco on loans.
In terms of sales, it was also a quiet window. Carlos Augusto’s loan to Inter was made permanent for €13.25m, while Juventus signed goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio for a €4.5m loan fee and Andrea Colpani went to Fiorentina for a €4m loan fee. Both deals are expected to become permanent.
The rather underwhelming mercato seems to have seeped into their start to the season. It took the Brianzoli until matchday eight to win their first game (3-0 away at Verona), and it is their only victory to date.
Draws against Fiorentina and Inter in the first four games boosted spirits, however, they have lost to Genoa, Bologna, Napoli and Atalanta, leaving them hovering above the relegation zone and with talk of Nesta being on shaky ground.
After the loss to La Dea, Nesta is considering wholesale changes of his own and these will start in defence with Armando Izzo and Andrea Carboni set to replace Danilo D’Amborsio and Luca Caldirola – Pablo Mari will remain at the heart of the defence.
In midfield, there is only one change expected which will see Warren Bando return after serving his suspension in midweek, and he will partner the captain Matteo Pessina. On the wings, Pedro Pereira and Georgios Kyriakopoulos will be named once again.
Nesta is considering changing his front three as well, with Dany Mota set to be partnered by the returning Daniel Maldini after the former Rossonero addressed his condition during in his press conference. Milan Duric will start ahead of them.
Match Prediction
When Fonseca has been under the height of pressure and Milan have needed a result with their backs against the wall they have so far delivered, and we expect that trend to continue against a team also struggling for confidence. This will lure us into a false sense of hope, naturally, before a heavy defeat in Madrid.
Monza 0-2 Milan
Credit: Sempremilan