ATALANTA v AC MILAN: THE BRIEFING

AC Milan are heading into a tough but tasty trip as they look to extend their winning run in Serie A and build form ahead of next week's crunch match in the Champions League. The Rossoneri are on a decent run in the league, though they haven't won away from home since the start of October. La Dea, on the other hand, are in red-hot form in Europe but have had a stuttering start to their Serie A campaign. Both sides want all three points at all costs. Atalanta v AC Milan is the big game on matchday 15; let's take a look at three potentially key factors.

SCORING FROM RANGE
The half-spaces could be hotly contested. Atalanta play with two attacking midfielders in behind the striker and attack in numbers, but that's also where they tend to concede space when defending as they look to shut down wing play and defend their penalty box. As such, shots from distance could become one of the keys to the game. Looking at the games between the two sides last season, this factor is clearly important when you look at the goals from Malinovskyi and Bennacer in the 1-1 draw in Bergamo and Theo's opener in our 2-2 win at San Siro. AC Milan will need to make sure that Maignan is not put under too much pressure by closing down their man on the edge of the box. They will also have to try to catch Musso out at the other end with accuracy and power in their shots. Whether it's from just outside the area or longer range, goals win you matches, so you should never be scared to take the shot on.

ADAPTED DEFENCES
With big absences for both sides, it may be the team that remains compact in the face of difficulties that wins the day. The injury situation at the back led to an experiment which placed Theo Hernández at centre-back against Frosinone, a role in which he played well. Now, however, is the true test against a pacey and mobile Atalanta attack. Gasperini will also have limited options due to absences, and the Rossoneri's offence is ready and raring to take full advantage. Both backlines will need to adapt and require extra effort from their respective leaders. For two sides who - after a strong start - are struggling to keep a clean sheet, it will be far from easy. Support from the midfielders - especially Musah and Reijnders for AC Milan and Ederson and Koopmeiners for the hosts - as they will need to work hard to cover any gaps in the defence that might appear. Falling apart as a unit is absolutely not allowed.

BREAKING THE DEADLOCK
The third key could be getting that all-important opener. AC Milan have often started matches strongly in the league, and doing the same in Bergamo would be huge. To date, Gasperini's side have gone behind on seven occasions this season and haven't won once from a losing position: six defeats and a draw. The Rossoneri have come from behind to win just once this season: the 3-1 win in Cagliari after Luvumbo opened the scoring. However, they have scored the first goal in eleven matches this season and haven't lost a single one, winning nine of those eleven. Recent draws in Naples and Lecce, though, mean that AC Milan won't be as settled as they could be; should the Rossoneri take the lead, they would need to maintain their focus for the entire outing. The task of earning the lead will be up to Giroud & Co.

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