Coppa Italia Semi-Final , AC Milan vs Juventus : Preview

A half strength Milan side must take on a very well organized and dangerous Juventus team who have found themselves under their old captain and new coach, Conte. Juve are now the only team in Europe to have suffered no defeats so far this season, granted they are not taking part in any European competitions, however, no defeats after 21 games in a league like Serie A is certainly very impressive. Conte has created a lethal and versatile unit , and through his constant squad rotation , the parts of this unit are mostly interchangeable, so despite Pepe's absence to injury , you could still expect to see the same ruthlessness.

It hasn't been easy for Allegri this season, although he's been consistent enough with the points, getting almost the same points as he had last season when he won the league with Milan, it is no guarantee that what was enough last season will be enough this time around. Especially if Juve keep their form going, and even more so if Milan cannot find a solution for winning against tough opponents. The match this evening, although a Coppa Italia semi final, is in my opinion, a preview of the more important Milan vs Juve fixture on the 25th of Feb , the result of which will either help Juve break away from the chasing pack to increase their chances of lifting the scudetto, or it could keep the title race wide open provided Milan put an end to Juve's unbeaten run. 

Milan's injury list is quite worrying. Over two seasons, it has been very rare to see AC Milan have less than 5 or 6 players in the infirmary. Now the list grows to 10, one could field a pretty strong team made up of all the injured players: Abbiati, Nesta, Yepes, Aquilani, Prince, Flamini, Merkel, Gattuso, Cassano, Pato. As anyone can see, the Milan midfield , even at full strength was considered Average, and now without Prince who has a strong presence on the field, and without the services of Aquilani who adds some activity and creativity to the Milan center , it is going to be a big challenge for the players who take the field. Milan have 5 midfielders left that are not injured, but Nocerino is suspended for this game, and hence only 4 midfielders are available so therefore the choice in midfield is relatively simple for Mr. Allegri, you can expect to see the usual 4-3-1-2 formation, with the following players on the field: 

                      Amelia
Abate, Mexes(Bonera) , Thiago Silva, Mesbah
Ambrosini, Van Bommel, Emmanuelson
                 Seedorf 

    El Shaarawy(Maxi Lopez) , Ibrahimovic 

As for Antonio Conte, A 4-3-3 formation would most likely be in play with the following selection: 

                     Storari
Lichtsteiner, Bonucci, Chiellini, De Ceglie 
            Vidal, Pirlo, Marchisio
      Giaccherini, Borriello, Vucinic

 It will certainly be an intriguing battle, the pressure is on Allegri and the Rossoneri as the Milan fans will be watching to see if the team has what it takes to overcome Juve. If they do manage a positive result, I believe this would give the players a new found confidence which would help them in other competitions.