AC Milan travel to face Venezia on Sunday in Serie A, and Sergio Conceicao has had mixed news on the injury front as he prepares for the clash.
The Rossoneri produced a brilliant win in midweek to book our place in the Coppa Italia final after seeing off rivals Inter, and so it’s hoped that momentum can continue to build between now and the end of the season.
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While that may well be our best route to qualifying for European football next year, Conceicao will want to see his side produce positive performances in the league and climb the standings in the coming weeks, and so that starts with trying to get three points this weekend.
According to MilanNews, the Milan boss could receive a fitness boost with Kyle Walker training with the group again this week, and having had an outside shot at featuring against Inter, there is optimism that he will be ready to play on Sunday having now recovered from his elbow injury.
However, it’s not as positive with Matteo Gabbia after he was forced off in the second half of our win over Inter with a neck problem, as Sky Sports’ Manuele Baiocchini reports that although the Milan centre-half started training again on Friday morning, he was still struggling with soreness, which in turn makes him a doubt to start against Venezia.
That’s a blow given his recent form since the switch to a three-man defence, as particularly against Inter, he played a key role in marshalling and organising the backline to keep a clean sheet.
It’s added that Malick Thiaw is back in contention and so he could come in to replace his teammate if Milan stick with a 3-4-3 system, while it remains to be seen if Walker displaces Alex Jimenez on the right side in that set-up.
Regardless of personnel, it’s another important outing for the players to show their quality ahead of what could be a big summer of change at various levels, and as we gear up for the Coppa Italia final, they will all want to find form and stake their claim for a starting spot in that showdown with Bologna next month.
The Rossoneri currently sit in ninth place in the standings, nine points adrift of the Champions League qualification spots with just five games remaining this season, while our upcoming opponents are at the wrong end of the table and fighting to preserve their top flight status.
In turn, it promises to be a scrappy game in which we’ll have to match their energy and intensity, but utilise our superior quality to secure all three points.
