Serie A Preview: Torino vs Milan – Team News, Line-ups & Prediction | OneFootball

Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino forms the backdrop for a handsomely-looking Serie A showdown between Torino and Milan. While the situation won’t change much for the hosts regardless of the result, anything other than three points could end the visitors’ top-four hopes.

Torino overturned an early deficit at Bologna last weekend through Nikola Vlasic and Elif Elmas, only to concede two unanswered goals from the 70th minute onward in a goal-glutted 3-2 defeat. Another underwhelming result left Paolo Vanoli’s stranded in mid-table.

That’s an all-too-familiar territory for the home side as they sit closer to the relegation zone than the top six in terms of points. Eight points adrift of 10th-placed Udinese, Torino must start racking up points consistently to avoid a first bottom-half finish in four seasons.

Meanwhile, confidence has significantly dwindled around the Milan camp in the lead-up to this ‘make or break’ trip. The Rossoneri bowed out of their Champions League knockout playoff tie against Feyenoord despite Santiago Gimenez’s first-minute goal to level the aggregate score.

Indeed, Theo Hernandez’s mindless red card saw Milan draw 1-1 against the Dutch outfit at the San Siro on Tuesday. That wasn’t sufficient after a 1-0 first-leg loss in Rotterdam, condemning one of Serie A’s biggest spenders to an early European exit.

Securing Champions League football for next season has become imperative for Milan. However, a five-point deficit on fourth-placed Juventus highlights the size of the task, though they can take confidence from a game in hand on their direct top-four rivals.

Match Preview

Torino

The abovementioned defeat at Bologna extended Torino’s winless run in Serie A to three games (D2, L1), piling more pressure on Vanoli as his team amassed five points worse off than at the same stage of the last three seasons. Yet, they can draw heart from their recent home league form.

Vanoli’s charges haven’t lost any of their last four Serie A games in Turin (W1, D3) despite netting one goal or fewer on three occasions. Interestingly, they’ve defeated Milan in back-to-back top-flight meetings on this ground and could make it three wins in a row for the first time since 1977.

Achieving that feat won’t be simple. While Torino are unbeaten in home league action against teams starting the round below them in the standings, they have yet to beat better-ranked opposition at home (D2, L4).

Milan

Despite a gut-wrenching Champions League elimination, Milan have fared reasonably well in Serie A since sacking Paulo Fonseca. His successor, Sergio Conceicao, has inspired the Rossoneri to four wins in his first seven league games in charge (D2, L1), with only pacesetters Napoli picking up more points in that sequence.

Milan squeezed past Hellas Verona 1-0 at home last weekend, courtesy of Gimenez’s late winner to post back-to-back league wins for the first time since mid-September. That was also the last time they won three consecutive Serie A games, underscoring the team’s notorious inconsistency this season.

On the bright side, Milan emerged victorious from three of their last four away league matches (L1). Therefore, they should be confident of avenging a dramatic 2-2 draw in August’s reverse fixture. Adding to Milan’s optimism, they’ve been impressive in away encounters against sides beginning this round below them in the table (W4, D1, L1).

Team News

Torino cannot call upon Duvan Zapata, Perr Schuurs, Adrien Tameze, and Alieu Njie due to injuries, while experienced defender Adam Masina must serve a one-game ban for accumulated yellow cards. On a positive note, star midfielder Samuele Ricci returns from suspension.

Meanwhile, Milan will be without long-term absentees Alessandro Florenzi, Emerson Royal, and Ruben Loftus-Cheek for this contest. Moreover, winter signing Kyle Walker sustained a muscle injury against Feyenoord and will likely remain on the sidelines, meaning Alejandro Jimenez could return to the starting line-up.

Torino vs Milan Potential Starting Line-ups

Torino (4-2-3-1): Milinkovic-Savic; Walukiewicz, Maripan, Coco, Biraghi; Ricci, Casadei; Lazaro, Vlasic, Elmas; Adams.

Milan (4-2-3-1): Maignan; Jimenez, Tomori, Pavlovic, Hernandez; Fofana, Musah; Pulisic, Reijnders, Leao; Gimenez.

Torino vs Milan Prediction

Milan cannot settle for anything less than three points. Yet, Torino have proved a tough nut to crack on home turf and have made a habit of upsetting the Rossoneri on this ground. As such, we can envisage another unwanted result for the visitors.