UDINESE v AC MILAN: MATCH PREVIEW

Good things come in threes, as the saying goes. And Stefano Pioli’s Rossoneri will be hoping this applies in Udine, where they’ll be looking to make it three league wins from three in 2024. The team want to continue a positive run that started at the end of 2023 and also gain revenge for their defeat to Udinese in November. There are a lot of places separating the two teams in the league, but both sides will have the same desire to pick up maximum points in tonight’s 20:45 CET kick-off. Here is our Match Preview as the game draws nearer.

LATEST FROM MILANELLO
For the first time in a long time, the Rossoneri have had a full week of work at Milanello without any matches to play or the holiday season disrupting their rhythm. The past few days have seen both Florenzi and Sportiello return to group training, while Pellegrino is set to be involved in the Primavera squad tomorrow. The Diavolo’s ranks have thus been boosted heading into a game where three points are required to consolidate their third-place position and possibly move closer to the top two. There could be a repeat of the 4-2-3-1 used against Roma, with Kjær and Gabbia forming the centre-back pairing and the duo of Adli and Reijnders playing together in midfield. The latter is one booking away from suspension, as is Musah.

“There were many things we could have done better in the home game earlier this season. We are different teams than in the past; it doesn't matter what has happened before,” said Stefano Pioli on the eve of the game. “We shouldn't be looking back and have worked well; what counts now is the performance in Udine. There aren't games defined by region or the map: each one is worth three points, and we want to walk away with all of them.”

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LATEST FROM UDINESE
Udinese have had a difficult season so far: since the start of the three-points-per-win era, the Friulani have never picked up fewer than 18 points from their opening 20 league matches (their current tally). Nevertheless, their form is improving: a seven-point haul from their last five matches has improved their position, even if the table still makes for bad reading. Cioffi’s side have the same record on home turf as they do away and will consider the match against AC Milan an opportunity to really start to push on at the Stadio Friuli. In their 3-5-1-1 formation, the Bianoneri are set to name an unchanged defence (Okoye has ousted Silvestri as the first-choice goalkeeper), while Walace will be hoping to dictate the tempo in midfield. Cioffi will have Payero at his disposal and is once again set to field Pereyra behind lone striker Lucca, who has scored four goals in Udinese’s last four home outings.

“I’m not distracted by the transfer market and currently seeing a focused team who want to perform well,” said Gabriele Cioffi in his pre-match press conference. “AC Milan aren’t a side you should press high up the pitch and, even though they’re short on numbers in defence, they are strong and possess a lot of quality. It’ll be a difficult match where we’ll have very little room for error. Our victory earlier on in the season is a thing of the past.”

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PRE-MATCH NUMBERS

• The two teams are set to meet for the 98th time in Serie A: AC Milan currently have 42 wins to their name compared to Udinese’s 19, with 36 draws completing the picture. However, the last eight matches in Udine have ended in three wins apiece and two draws.
• The upcoming match pits together the two sides who, during the current campaign, have completed the most dribbles (200 for Udinese, 174 for AC Milan) and fielded the most players born after 1 January 2004 (seven for the Rossoneri, four for the Bianconeri).
• Rafael Leão is one away from scoring his 50th goal for AC Milan in all competitions and also on the verge of enjoying his 100th win in Rossoneri colours (99). Our number 10 is also one goal away from netting for the 50th time across the top five European leagues and thus drawing level with Manuel Rui Costa in second place when it comes to the highest Portuguese goalscorers in Serie A history.
• This season, no other player in the league has won their team more points than Olivier Giroud, who has reached double goalscoring figures in Serie A for the third consecutive campaign: through his goals and assists, the Frenchman has earned AC Milan eleven points.
• Stefano Pioli is just one victory away from making it 100 Serie A wins in charge of AC Milan. Only four coaches in Rossoneri history have previously reached this tally: Carlo Ancelotti, Fabio Capello, Nils Liedholm and Nereo Rocco.

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WHERE TO WATCH UDINESE v AC MILAN
In Italy, the match will be broadcast by DAZN and Sky Sport. To watch Udinese 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 CET and continuing up until shortly before kick-off. After full-time, there will be interviews and Coach Pioli's press conference. From 20:40 CET, 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
Fabio Maresca is set to take charge of his 125th game in Serie A. The 42-year-old has already refereed Udinese and AC Milan in their respective home matches against Hellas Verona this campaign. In total, he’s encountered the Rossoneri on 13 occasions in the league. Maresca’s assistants will be Di Iorio and Scatragli, while Baroni will perform the role of fourth official. Abisso, assisted by Irrati, will oversee VAR.

There will be a reduced schedule in Serie A this weekend, with four matches (Bologna v Fiorentina, Inter v Atalanta, Sassuolo v Napoli and Torino v Lazio) set to be played at a later date due to the Supercoppa Italiana in Saudi Arabia. Today, in addition to Udinese v AC Milan at 20:45 CET, Roma v Hellas Verona is scheduled for 18:00 CET. Four fixtures will be played on Sunday 21 January: Frosinone v Cagliari (12:30 CET), Empoli v Monza (15:00 CET), Salernitana v Genoa (18:00 CET) and Lecce v Juventus (20:45 CET).

This is the current league table: Inter 51; Juventus 49; AC Milan 42; Fiorentina 34; Atalanta and Lazio 33; Bologna 32; Napoli 31; Roma 29; Torino 28; Monza 25; Genoa 22; Lecce 21; Sassuolo and Frosinone 19; Udinese and Cagliari 18; Hellas Verona 17; Empoli 13; Salernitana 12.

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