BOLOGNA v AC MILAN: MATCH PREVIEW

Since the postponement of Bologna v AC Milan at the end of October, a lot has changed. The two teams are now set to meet at the Dall'Ara for their rearranged matchday 9 clash in Serie A, with kick-off scheduled for 20:45 CET on Thursday 27 February. It represents a real six-pointer: the two sides are level on points just outside the European places, and both are aiming to achieve Champions League qualification come the end of the season. It is a must-win game with that objective in mind.

LATEST FROM MILANELLO
The Rossoneri are looking to bounce back from their painful 2-1 defeat to Torino away from home. Despite creating several chances, it ended up being a hugely disappointing evening where the opposition goalkeeper excelled and things didn't go AC Milan's way. Coach Conceição's side now have practically no room for error and need to pick up maximum points to get themselves back in the running. Without the Champions League, and with the Coppa Italia still a while away, the team must currently focus all their efforts on climbing the Serie A table. Walker is out, with Jiménez ready to play. Fofana could return to the starting line-up, and the Coach has plenty of options in attack. Musah is one booking away from suspension.

LATEST FROM BOLOGNA
Bologna lost 2-0 away to Parma in their last league outing. It was a surprising defeat after a positive run of form where, despite their League Phase elimination, the Rossoblù also impressed in the Champions League. Bologna currently share a few similarities with AC Milan: the two teams have the same number of points in Serie A and are aiming to finish in the top four, and both will be involved in the Coppa Italia semi-finals in April. Two former Rossoneri players could feature in the Rossoblù's 4-2-3-1 (or 4-3-3 if Italiano opts for a more attacking approach) formation, namely Calabria and Pobega. Bologna's main threat remains Castro, while the in-form Ndoye and the now fully recovered Orsolini are also players to watch out for.

PRE-MATCH STATS

• AC Milan have kept a clean sheet in nine of their most recent 18 away matches against Bologna in Serie A. In general, only against Roma (25) have the Rossoneri recorded more shutouts on the road than against the Rossoblù (24, the same number against Napoli).
• Bologna (six) and AC Milan (five) are among the best four teams in the division in terms of goals conceded from dead ball situations; they're joined by Napoli (two) and Fiorentina (six) in this regard. 
• AC Milan's next win will be their 1500th in Serie A. Only two sides in the history of the competition have reached this milestone: Juventus (1705) and Inter (1590).
• Tijjani Reijnders has scored eight goals in the league this season. Excluding penalties, the last Rossoneri midfielder to do better than this was Antonio Nocerino in 2011/12 (ten).

TIME MACHINE: BOLOGNA v AC MILAN

Read now

WHERE TO WATCH BOLOGNA v AC MILAN
In Italy, Bologna v AC Milan will be broadcast on DAZN. To watch it in a different country, you can check the "Where to Watch Milan on TV" section under "Abroad." On the Rossoneri channels, the Matchday coverage on Milan TV will begin at 17:15 CEST, leading up to kick-off, followed by interviews and a press conference with  Coach Conceição. Don't miss the coverage on acmilan.com, the AC Milan Official App, official social media channels and WhatsApp.

LATEST FROM SERIE A
Maurizio Mariani will be the referee for the match. Mariani, who is set to take charge of his 166th Serie A fixture, has previously refereed 23 fixtures involving the Rossoneri (the most recent one was AC Milan's 2-1 derby victory over Inter in September) and 17 Bologna matches. Lo Cicero and Mastrodonato will be his assistants, while Piccinini will perform the role of fourth official. Di Bello, assisted by Paterna, will oversee VAR.

Matchday 9 in Serie A - with the exception of Bologna v AC Milan - was played between 25 and 27 October 2024. These were the results: Udinese 2-0 Cagliari, Torino 1-0 Como, Napoli 1-0 Lecce, Atalanta 6-1 Hellas Verona, Parma 1-1 Empoli, Lazio 3-0 Genoa, Monza 2-2 Venezia, Inter 4-4 Juventus and Fiorentina 5-1 Roma.

Here is the current league table: Inter 57; Napoli 56; Atalanta 54; Juventus 49; Lazio 47; Fiorentina 42; AC Milan* and Bologna* 41; Roma 40; Udinese 36; Torino 31; Genoa 30; Como 28; Hellas Verona 26; Cagliari and Lecce 25; Parma 23; Empoli 21; Venezia 17; Monza 14.
_{* = one game in hand}

The AC Milan PUMA Kits for 2024/25 are available: buy them now!