GENOA v AC MILAN: MATCH PREVIEW

The games keep on coming thick and fast, with another tricky away trip on the horizon for the Rossoneri. Having drawn with Borussia Dortmund in their last outing, Coach Pioli's side are now fully focused on league football. A match against Gilardino's Genoa awaits at 20:45 CEST on Saturday 7 October, and here's our Match Preview ahead of the clash on matchday eight in Serie A.

LATEST FROM MILANELLO
AC Milan are aiming for their fourth consecutive league win to finish off an intense period in the best way possible. The match at the Marassi comes after an energy-sapping game against Borussia Dortmund and certainly won't be easy. Following the midweek clash in Europe, Coach Pioli is undoubtedly considering making changes, starting from the team's attack. Up front the three Rossoneri who played from the first minute in Germany could start from the bench, in this scenario Okafor would act in place of Leão, while Jović and Chukwueze would replace Giroud and Pulisic. Furthermore, compared to the Rossoneri line-up in Dortmund, it's likely that Florenzi and Adli will replace Calabria and Pobega. No one is out through suspension, although Theo Hernández is one booking away from missing the team’s next match.

LATEST FROM GENOA
After their home defeat to Fiorentina on the opening matchday, Alberto Gilardino's side are now unbeaten in two games at the Marassi having held Napoli to a 2-2 draw and fired four past Roma. It's been a very solid start for newly promoted Genoa, who have picked up eight points in seven games. In the Grifone's 3-5-1-1 formation, the main doubt is whether Mateo Retegui will be able to line up in attack. In case the number 19 misses out, Gilardino has two options: either Pușcaș will lead the line or Messias will play behind Guðmundsson. Strootman and Badelj are out, meaning Malinovs'kyj, Frendrup and Thorsby are set to retain their midfield places. The Rossoblù have plenty of options on the flanks, with Matturro and De Winter likely to get the nod over Haps and Sabelli.

"We'll be facing a side who have both a strong starting line-up and bench," said Alberto Gilardino on the eve of the game. "They have players with important characteristics who are full of running and combine technical quality with physicality. In terms of the identity he’s given the team, Pioli has done some extraordinary work in the last few years. As for us, we'll need to play with real courage."

PRE-MATCH NUMBERS

• AC Milan have won seven of their last nine Serie A matches against Genoa (D1, L1), including the last three. They've scored at least two goals in seven of these games.
• The Rossoneri have scored at least two goals in each of their last four away matches against Genoa in Serie A and could extend this streak to five for the first time in the Italian top flight.
• AC Milan have scored in ten consecutive Serie A matches, and haven't gone on a longer scoring run since finding the net for 18 successive games between May and December 2021.
• Genoa (first with 21%) and AC Milan (third with 18%) are currently two of the best three teams in Serie A in terms of conversion rate; Fiorentina (19%) sit second in this regard since the start of the season.

WHERE TO WATCH GENOA v AC MILAN
In Italy, the match will be broadcast by DAZN and Sky. To watch Genoa v AC Milan in a different country, you can consult the "AC Milan on TV" webpage, clicking on the heading "Abroad". On the Rossoneri channels, Milan TV will provide live matchday coverage starting from 19:45 CEST and continuing up until shortly before kick-off. After full-time, there will be interviews and Coach Pioli's press conference. From 20:40 CEST, there will also be our Live Reaction show on our Twitch channel. Also, not to be missed is the coverage on acmilan.com, the AC Milan Official App and our official social media profiles.

LATEST FROM SERIE A
Marco Piccinini will be the referee for the clash in Genoa. The 40-year-old has previously crossed paths with the Rossoneri on two occasions, first taking charge of AC Milan 1-0 SPAL on 31 October 2019 (decided by a Suso free-kick, Coach Pioli's first win in the Rossoneri dugout) and then AC Milan 1-1 Sampdoria on 3 April 2021 (Hauge on the scoresheet for the Diavolo). However, he's never refereed a match involving the Rossoblù. Liberti and Dei Giudici will be the linesmen, while Ayroldi will perform the role of fourth official. Di Paolo and Nasca will oversee VAR.

Matchday 8 in Serie A kicked off with two matches on Friday: Empoli 0-0 Udinese and Lecce 1-1 Sassuolo. Saturday's action will begin with Inter v Bologna at 15:00 CEST, followed by Juventus v Torino at 18:00 CEST and Genoa v AC Milan at 20:45 CEST. Due to the upcoming international break, the latest round of fixtures will come to an end on Sunday. Five matches are in store: Monza v Salernitana at 12:30 CEST, Frosinone v Hellas Verona and Lazio v Atalanta at 15:00 CEST, Cagliari v Roma at 18:00 CEST and Napoli v Fiorentina at 20:45 CEST.

This is how the table currently looks: Inter and AC Milan 18; Napoli, Juventus and Fiorentina 14; Atalanta 13; Lecce* 12; Bologna and Sassuolo* 10; Frosinone, Torino and Monza 9; Roma, Genoa and Hellas Verona 8; Lazio 7; Udinese* 5; Empoli* 4; Salernitana 3; Cagliari 2. (* = one more game played)

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