Milan vs Lazio

October 29, 2013
By: Nemanja Lazarevic

The fallen giants of Italian football are set to square off in a high-profile match at San Siro. And while Milan will be happy to return to home comforts following yet another disappointing result on the road, Lazio are hoping to end a seven-match winless run on the travels after boss Vladimir Petkovic bought himself some time with a home triumph over Cagliari.

No cure for travel sickness

For the second season in a row, Milan are struggling to cope with the serious injury problems in the opening exchanges and with this happening year after year, the club’s medical team should be under the spotlight rather than boss Max Allegri, who is doing the best he can considering the circumstances. And while team’s dismal away form remains the number one problem, at least the Rossoneri are producing decent performances at their San Siro, which should count for something. It is at home that Milan have beaten Cagliari, Sampdoria and Udinese, while suffering an unfortunate defeat to Napoli, and that is where Max Allegri’s men played out a 1-1 draw with Barcelona as well. Team’s latest results are enough to suggest that San Siro can still be considered a fortress and another home win is a must if the Rossoneri are to close the gap behind their top 3 rivals. Milan have been showing a lot of promise since Mario Balotelli and Kaka returned into action, and with Alessandro Matri finally breaking his scoring duck, I believe the Rossoneri can be trusted to see off out-of-sorts Lazio.

Philippe Mexes remains banned, whilst Christian Abbiati, Daniele Bonera, Stephan El Shaarawy, Giampaolo Pazzini and Matias Silvestre are out injured.

Five-match winless run comes to an end

Having finished the previous league campaign in seventh place, Lazio were hoping to show a considerable improvement this term, but it is slowly becoming clear the Biancocelesti don’t have what it takes to fight for European positions this term. Captain Stefano Mauri, who is serving a nine-month ban, has been sorely missed in the opening exchanges, while the fact two other key players are nearing Stadio Olimpico exit is certainly not helping. Given that star striker Miroslav Klose has already revealed he will be leaving Lazio at the end of the season and taking into account that Hernanes is reportedly looking to leave as well, it is hardly surprising the Biancocelesti are not exactly playing to their potential. Similar to their next opponents, Vladimir Petkovic’s side have been pretty solid at home, but having failed to win any of their seven away fixtures this season, Lazio clearly have little to hope for before a trip to Milan. Considering that the boss is also under intense pressure at the moment, the Biancocelesti don’t look capable of upsetting the odds at San Siro.

Diego Novaretti and Lucas Biglia have been added to the injury list that already contained the likes of Giuseppe Biava, Abdoulay Konko, Senad Lulic, Andre Dias and Vinicius Freitas.

Verdict

AC Milan have been quite convincing in home games this season and the team look confident enough to defeat struggling Lazio at San Siro. The Biancocelesti have been utterly disappointing on the travels and their injury-hit squad are unlikely to fare any better on Wednesday evening.

Top pick: Home win   1.83 (5/6) @ Paddy Power

Alternative pick 1: Under 2.5 goals   1.91 (10/11) @ William Hill

Alternative pick 2: Milan to win to nil   3.10 (21/10) @ Coral

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