UDINESE v AC MILAN: THE BRIEFING

The Serie A TIM continues with a challenging away match for the Rossoneri, who will face Udinese on Matchday 21. AC Milan will arrive in Udine with three consecutive victories in Serie A, however, on Saturday, the Rossoneri are playing in a stadium where they haven't won since November 2020. There are many motivations to do well, and in our usual briefing, we analyse the paths to explore in the hope of beating the Bianconeri.

MAINTAINING AWARENESS WITH QUALITY
The reintroduction of the "double pivot" against Roma was fruitful after initial experiments against Cagliari in the Coppa Italia and Empoli in the Serie A. Reijnders and Adli speak the same football language, frequently seeking each other (15 exchanges during the match against the Giallorossi) and enhancing the Rossoneri's maneuver with unpredictability and verticality. Their quality will be crucial in Udine to unsettle a very physical Udinese midfield. Without aiming to balance the physicality in midfield, Mister Pioli will rely on Yacine and Tijj to compete on the passing level. The flip side, however, there must be constant monitoring of the offensive forays of Cioffi's players – Walace, Lovrić, Samardžić (to which Pereyra can be added) – who pose a significant threat in the goal area.

CONTROLLING THE LEFT WITH SPEED
In the last home game, Theo and Rafa found themselves in their usual positions after the Frenchman's temporary move to the centre of defence to plug the emergency, especially in December. Since the beginning of 2024, in the four games played so far, contributions have increased for both: for Hernández, three assists and one goal, for Leão, two goals and one assist. Numbers and signs of a tandem that is growing again and a confidence that is slowly rising. In Udine, the two will presumably find continuity on the left, with the mission to continue making an impact. They will face a 3-5-1-1 that will likely try to snuff out their accelerations, but talent gives rise to ideas and solutions, and the whole team knows it can rely on their star players. Moreover, Rafa has been goalless in the league since September, he needs to break the drought, and his motivation will be very high.

CHALLENGING UDINESE
In terms of characteristics, positions, and formations, Udinese have proven to be a team that is historically challenging for the Rossoneri (only one win in the last six meetings), and, above all, they have beaten us in the last two encounters. The results history requires special attention on the pitch, while performance should lead the team to a special effort in the search for offensive solutions because Udinese will concede little and thrive on breakthroughs when it's their turn to attack. "Attention to detail" becomes important because these types of uncomfortable matches can often be difficult, the Rossoneri need to focus on: resolved precision and cleanliness in plays, courage to try new things – perhaps some shots from outside the box – and effectiveness on set-pieces, which can be precious tools on such occasions.

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