AC Milan take on Bologna in the Coppa Italia final at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on Wednesday night, and here’s how Sergio Conceicao’s starting line-up could look for the encounter.
In what has been a largely underwhelming and disappointing season, the Rossoneri have the chance to salvage something from it in the next couple of weeks by lifting another trophy after our Italian Super Cup success at the end of last year.
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Adding another piece of silverware to the club’s collection should be motivation enough, but as we continue to try and close the gap on our rivals in the Serie A standings, it also represents another pathway to Europe.
In turn, Conceicao and the players will be desperate to lift the trophy in midweek, and the Milan boss has been handed good news on the injury front it seems as he’ll have as close to a full-strength starting XI at his disposal as possible.
As per MilanNews, both Fikayo Tomori and Youssouf Fofana are set to shake off injury issues to be named in the Milan XI, while it’s Luka Jovic who looks set to get the nod to lead the line up front.
Mike Maignan will continue between the posts, while it’s a settled and familiar backline with Tomori being joined by Matteo Gabbia and Strahinja Pavlovic, with the Rossoneri conceding just three goals in our last six outings across all competitions after the switch to a 3-4-3 system, and with that trio predominantly forming our defensive line.
In midfield, it’s hoped that Fofana is indeed available to start to restore his crucial midfield partnership with Tijjani Reijnders in the heart of this Milan side, while Alex Jimenez and Theo Hernandez should continue in the wing-back roles to provide us with width and an attacking dynamic down the flanks.
Christian Pulisic and Rafael Leao are expected to complete our attacking trident behind Jovic, but the pressure will be on the Milan frontman to deliver, as an in-form Santiago Gimenez and Tammy Abraham will be on the bench ready to come on and make an impact if needed.
It’s a strong Milan line-up with options on the bench, and while it would of course be an added bonus to get a convincing and top-class performance to go with it, ultimately the only thing that matters this week is winning the game and securing another trophy to try and finish the season off well.
Time will tell if Fofana in particular has sufficiently recovered in time as Conceicao was non-committal on his status when speaking in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday evening, but there is no denying that the Frenchman’s inclusion will be absolutely critical to our chances given the balance and presence he gives us in midfield as we try to control and dictate tempo and possession.
