AC Milan vs Chievo

October 3, 2014
By: Nemanja Lazarevic

AC Milan will be out to end a three-match winless run in Serie A when they host Chievo, but they will have to be wary of the opposition’s swift counterattacks. The flying Donkeys couldn’t beat Empoli at home, but having already defeated Napoli on the road, they can be trusted to make life difficult for the Rossoneri.

Still searching for top form

With inexperienced Filippo Inzaghi taking over the reigns in the summer and the squad undergoing serious changes, Milan were always going to have a tough task of improving on last season’s performances. And while the Rossoneri have already shown a great deal of potential, it is perfectly clear that the boss has yet to find the right balance between attack and defence, which has seen the team conceded too many cheap goals in the opening exchanges. Given the amount of high-quality attackers at his disposal, Filippo Inzaghi can rest assured that his men will score at least a couple of goals in most matches, but he is still searching for the best back four, with defence looking extremely shaky at the moment. Having conceded nine goals in five league matches, Milan will struggle to contain former players Alberto Paloschi and Maxi Lopez, who will be afforded plenty of space in the final third. Meanwhile, the Rossoneri can be trusted to continue the good scoring run, especially if Jeremy Menez recovers from a knee injury. Therefore, Milan remain the favourites to win, but I cannot see them keeping the first clean sheet of the season.

The French winger faces a fitness test, but Riccardo Montolivo, Riccardo Saponara, Diego Lopez and Marco van Ginkel are out injured, whilst Cristian Zapata is banned.

Chievo looking strong

Despite being predicted a difficult relegation tussle every season, Chievo usually survive without any problems, but they have yet to make that next step and achieve a top table finish. The club have shown a great deal of ambition in the summer transfer window, signing the likes of Meggiorini, Birsa, Izco, Botta, Schelotto, Cofie, Biraghi and Maxi Lopez, among others, and despite most players arriving on loan deals, the Flying Donkeys have plenty of reason for optimism. The difficult fixture list is the main reason why Eugenio Corini’s charges won just one point from three home fixtures, losing to Juventus and Parma while sharing spoils with Empoli, but away win over Napoli proved they can still be a great danger on the road. Chievo tend to shock at least a couple of top Italian sides away from home each year since their organised defence and excellent counterattacks can be difficult to neutralise even for the Champions League hopefuls. And with the Flying Donkeys scoring in each of last five away matches in Serie A, they should be backed to continue the trend at San Siro.

With Ruben Botta, Mariano Izco and Ezequiel Schelotto out injured, Maxi Lopez should be drafted into the starting line-up.

Verdict

Milan may be a real threat when attacking, but they have yet to sort out their defence, having conceded in each of the league fixtures this season. This is something Chievo will know how to exploit, even if the Flying Donkeys are unlikely to claim another major scalp after defeating Napoli at San Paolo.

Top pick: Over 2.5 goals   1.95 (19/20) @ BetVictor

Alternative pick 1: Both teams to score   2.20 (6/5) @ bet365

Alternative pick 2: Home win & both teams to score   3.75 (11/4) @ Coral

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