AC MILAN v NAPOLI: MATCH PREVIEW

AC Milan’s last home fixture of the year pits together two high-flyers, and important points are up for grabs with the rest of the season in mind. At the end of a week where the Club celebrated its 122nd birthday, AC Milan v Napoli is set to take place at San Siro. It’s a big showdown between two sides that have found themselves in the upper reaches of the table since the beginning of the season. With kick-off coming up at 20:45 CET, here’s our Match Preview of the clash that will bring matchday 18 in Serie A to a close.

LATEST FROM MILANELLO
There’s been some good news for Stefano Pioli from the Milanello treatment room: Olivier Giroud has recovered, with the Frenchman ready to return following the injury he picked up in the Rossoneri’s victory over Atlético in Madrid. He’s likely to start from the bench and, if required, could come on for Zlatan Ibrahimović during the game. As for the rest of the team, it’s unlikely that there will be wholesale changes from the side that drew in Udine: it remains to be seen whether Florenzi will get the nod over Kalulu at right-back (the Italian seems to have the edge), while Díaz, Krunić, Messias and Saelemaekers are all in contention to line-up in the three attacking midfield spots behind Ibra.

"I’d like to surpass the 43 points we collected in the first half of the campaign last year: we need to start pedalling hard again. We’ll be up against a quality side, and a big performance will be required," said Stefano Pioli on the eve of the match. "It’ll be a very important six-pointer for both teams and I expect to face a determined and intense side. They set up in a similar way to us and have a very dynamic midfield. In terms of tactics, I think the technical quality on show and making choices at the right moment will be key."

LATEST FROM NAPOLI
The Partenopei also have various injury problems. Five key players won’t be involved in the San Siro showdown: the defenders Koulibaly and Mário Rui, midfielder Fabián Ruiz, and the attackers Insigne and Osimhen. Meanwhile, the conditions of Elmas and Lobotka will need to be assessed. Nevertheless, the latter two have been called up, as has Piotr Zieliński, who has recovered after coming off against Empoli. Anguissa returned to action last weekend after missing three matches due to an adductor injury. 

Spalletti’s team are currently going through a difficult spell after starting the season in excellent fashion. While the Azzurri beat Lazio in Serie A and got the better of Leicester in the Europa League in the last few weeks, they also suffered three league defeats against Inter (their first of the season), Atalanta and Empoli, resulting in a slide down the table.

"In Milan, we want to play our cards with the aim of picking up three points," said Luciano Spalletti a day before the game. “AC Milan have maintained a constant pace for two years, a period where they’ve displayed undisputed quality, both in terms of team organisation and on an individual level. Pioli is doing a great job, and I know that we’ll be up against a strong side tomorrow."

PRE-MATCH
This evening’s fixture will be the 147th time AC Milan and Napoli have met in Serie A: there have been 55 Rossoneri wins, 48 draws and 43 Partenopei victories. In the last few years, the Azzurri have had the upper hand: the Diavolo have won just one of the last 13 fixtures between the sides in the Italian top flight (five draws, seven Napoli wins). The Rossoneri’s last home victory against the Partenopei came the last time the match was played in December, in 2014. AC Milan’s last victory against the Azzurri came at the San Paolo last season: Zlatan Ibrahimović bagged a brace in a 3-1 win.

SERIE A
Davide Massa, one of the most experienced referees in the league, will be the man in the middle for the upcoming clash: the 40-year-old has already taken charge of 165 Serie A matches. 14 of these have involved AC Milan, with the last two being the home draws against Udinese and Cagliari last season. The Rossoneri have won five, drawn six and lost three when they’ve been refereed by Massa. The linesmen for the match will be Meli and Bindoni, while Rapuano will perform the role of fourth official. Di Paolo will oversee VAR with the help of De Meo.

The upcoming match at San Siro will bring matchday 18 in Serie A to a close. The latest round of fixtures got underway on Friday, with two fixtures taking place: Lazio 3-1 Genoa and Salernitana 0-5 Inter. Yesterday’s matches produced the following results: Atalanta 1-4 Roma, Bologna 0-2 Juventus and Cagliari 0-4 Udinese. Fiorentina 2-2 Sassuolo kicked off today’s action, while Spezia v Empoli (15:00 CET), Torino v Hellas Verona (18:00 CET) and Sampdoria v Venezia (18:00 CET) will all also be played today.

These are the current Serie A standings: Inter 43; AC Milan* 39; Atalanta 37; Napoli* 36; Roma, Fiorentina, Juventus 31; Lazio 28; Empoli* 26; Sassuolo, Bologna 24; Hellas Verona*; Torino* 22; Udinese 20; Sampdoria* 18; Venezia* 16; Spezia* 12; Genoa, Cagliari 10; Salernitana 8. (* = one game in hand)

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