Serie A giants AC Milan take a break from the Calcio to start their involvement in the Coppa Italia during the week when they play host to Torino, the team lead by Rossoneri former boss Sinisa Mihajlovic who will have a point to prove back in Milano.

All eyes on the Cup

AC Milan are doing rather well in the Serie A this season, but you should not think for a minute that Rossoneri will neglect the Coppa Italia competition. The fallen giants of the Serie A are keen to at least replicate the last season’s form in the competition and once again find their place in the finals, possibly with a different outcome this time. Having lost the Coppa Italia final to Juventus, Rossoneri got their revenge earlier in December when they beat Juventus to the Super Cup trophy after a penalty shootout in Doha. The trophy will have been a huge motivation for Vincenzo Montella’s young team and there is no doubt that Milan will be extremely motivated to do well in the Cup once again. Rossoneri are heading towards the Thursday game in great shape, having lost only two of their last 15 games in all competitions. Montella will be hoping several injury issues will not prevent his team from recording a positive result however.

The hosts are without Ignazio Abate who will be replaced by Mattia De Sciglio, whereas Juraj Kucka, Mati Fernandez and Riccardo Montolivo are also unavailable for the forthcoming duel.

The Bulls are recovering

Considered as the black horses of the Serie A, Torino have been rather unpredictable this season. Their five-match winning run back in November was cut short by three straight defeats toward the end of the year, but the Bulls have still managed to bounce back from the slump with a 1-0 win over Genoa and a goalless defeat at Sassuolo. Sinisa Mihajlovic did a great job in turning Torino into a highly competitive unit, which is able to put serious pressure on favourites and more prominent sides, which is why Milan will have to be rather careful against Mihajlovic’s Bulls. The Serbian tactician is once again returning to Milan shortly after he was narrowly beaten 3-2 back in August, which was his first game at San Siro after Milan sacking. Torino are flying high in the league this season, sitting in eighth place in the standings and their good Serie A results are bound to be enough of a motivation against Milan. Torino are yet to win at Milan, having been beaten on nine trips to San Siro out of the total 12 and Mihajlovic will have a mountain to climb on Thursday.

Afriyie Acquah is unavailable due to his Africa Cup of Nations responsibilities, whereas defender Christian Molinaro is suffering from an ACL injury. In addition, Mihajlovic will not be able to call upon Giuseppe Vives and Samuel Gustafson.

Verdict

Milan have been rather successful against Torino at home and are yet to lose the game to Bulls at San Siro. We strongly believe Thursday will not be the match their positive run against the Bulls comes to an end however, and we are prone to support Rossoneri for a clear-cut victory that will see them make a giant step towards fulfilling their aim in the competition.

Top pick: Milan   2.15 (23/20) @Coral

Alternative pick 1: Milan/Milan   3.50 (5/2) @BetVictor

Alternative pick 2: Milan to win to Nil   4.00 (3/1) @Bet365