Serie A Preview: Milan vs Juventus
AC Milan, under Max Allegri, is in a precarious position in the title race, trailing city rivals Inter Milan by 12 points. Losing the Scudetto seems imminent. Although they recently defeated Hellas Verona 1-0, their overall form has been unimpressive, particularly their attack, which has averaged only one goal per game in the last 10 matches. This is compounded by the worrying dip in form of two star players, Rafael Leão and Christian Pulisic, who have been struggling to score for a long time.
On the other hand, Juventus, under Luciano Spalletti, is in excellent form. The veteran coach has led the team to five wins out of their last six league matches and is unbeaten in eight consecutive games across all competitions. Juventus have now firmly secured fourth place and have a chance to finish as runners-up if they can beat Milan in this game. A formidable statistic under Spalletti is that Juventus are very difficult to score against, conceding only one goal in their last five wins. They also have a remarkable record against Milan, having kept a clean sheet in their last five league encounters.
Regarding squad availability, Milan have received good news as all their forwards are fully fit and available. However, Allegri may face a selection headache as Pulisic hasn't scored in the league since the end of last year, forcing him to consider fielding Christopher Nkunku or Santiago Gimenez. Adrien Rabiot, the talented midfielder who scored the winning goal in the previous match, is set to face his former team where he played over 150 games.
On the Juventus side, key players like Khephren Thuram and Emile Holm have returned to full training, and star player Kenan Yildiz should have recovered from his knee injury and be available to trouble the home team's defense. However, the fitness of star striker Dusan Vlahovic, who is heavily rumored to be a transfer target for Milan, remains a concern. Analysis suggests that despite the visitors' more aggressive form, Allegri's shrewd tactics in dealing with stronger teams should allow Milan to secure a point at home and maintain their top-four position.
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