WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND, JUVENTUS v AC MILAN PREVIEW

The wound of elimination from the Coppa Italia is still fresh but the Rossonere are ready to go again: the first game of the new Championship Round is away against Juventus. It will be important to react and give themselves a chance in this second phase of the season. The Champions League places are six points away and every match is now important to get towards the goal. Kick-off at 15:00 CET tomorrow, Saturday 18 March: let's get ready for the match with our preview. 

LATEST FROM PUMA HOUSE OF FOOTBALL
The match at the Tre Fontane in Rome was especially bad for Alia Guagni, who was injured as the Giallorossi scored their second goal and is now forced into a long injury lay-off. Kosovare Asllani won't be available against the Bianconere either; she has been out since Como v AC Milan on 26 February and has not yet made a full recovery. The semi-final second leg, on the other hand, greeted the returns of Guðný Árnadóttir and Lindsey Thomas. There are no suspended players, but Mascarello and Asllani are a yellow card away from suspension. In addition to Guagni and Asllani, Rubio, Jonušaitė and Dompig are also unavailable. 

Coach Ganz ahead of the game: "It'll be an interesting, important and tough game for both sides. We've prepared well for our remaining eight games, starting tomorrow."

Here is the Rossonere squad: Babb, Fedele, Giuliani; Árnadóttir, Carage, Fusetti, Mesjasz, Nouwen, Soffia, Tateo, Thrige; Adami, Bahlouli, Cesarini, K. Dubcová, Grimshaw, Mascarello, Vigilucci; Bergamaschi, M. Dubcová, Piemonte, Thomas.

LATEST FROM JUVENTUS
The Bianconeri are fresh from their success in the Coppa Italia two-legged tie against Inter, from which Coach Montemurro's girls reached the Final against Roma. In the league they must overcome the 8-point gap to Roma to win the Scudetto, won in each of the last five Serie A seasons. In Sunday's match, Juventus will have to do without Martina Rosucci, who underwent surgery on Friday for a partial cruciate ligament injury. Cernoia is also a doubt due to a sprained ankle. 

Joe Montemurro gave an interview on Juventus' official club Twitch channel before the game: "AC Milan have taken six points off us this season but we're ready physically and mentally for this game. The title race isn't over yet."

PRE-MATCH
This match contains two of the three Serie A teams with the most clean sheets this season in all competitions: Juventus (second with 15 behind Roma with 17) and AC Milan (third with 10). There will be two of the four Serie A players who have scored double figures in all competitions since the start of 2023: Martina Piemonte and Cristiana Girelli (10 goals each). The Rossonere striker scored twice against Juventus in the regular season, which has so far seen AC Milan triumph in both matches. 

WHERE TO WATCH AC MILAN ON TV
Juventus v AC Milan will be shown live at 15:00 CET on Saturday 18 March on LA7, TIMVision e Milan TV. Don't miss coverage on acmilan.com, official AC Milan social channels and AC Milan Official App where, the day after, the full match will be available on demand.

LATEST FROM WOMEN'S SERIE A
Marco Monaldi will referee this one, his assistants will be Maicol Ferrari and Egidio Marchetti. Fourth official is Enrico Gemelli. 

Matchday 1 of the second phase of the Women's Serie A got underway Friday 17 March with Fiorentina 1-5 Roma. Saturday 18 March at 3pm, Juventus v AC Milan, bye-week for Inter. 

Here is how the current table of the Championship Round looks, with points carried over from the regular season: Roma* 51, Juventus 40, Inter 35, AC Milan 34, Fiorentina* 34. (* = one more game played)

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