AC Milan vs Barcelona

Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium forms the backdrop for a blockbuster summer friendly between AC Milan and Barcelona.

A hallmark of Milan’s United States tour has been the inability to hold onto a lead, a nasty habit Stefano Pioli’s men will be keen to overcome in this fixture. After squandering a 2-0 halftime advantage in a 3-2 loss to Real Madrid in their opening US outing, ‘I Rossoneri’ wasted two separate leads in a 2-2 draw against bitter domestic rivals Juventus last time out, a game they went on to lose on penalties. Therefore, a 7-0 humbling of lower-league Italian side Lumezzane in their opening summer friendly remains Milan’s only triumph this summer. On the bright side, Pioli’s men have been on fire in the front third, netting 2+ first-half goals in all three pre-season matches to indicate the potential for a flying start.

On the other hand, Barcelona endured a stuttering start to their overseas tour, slumping to a woeful 5-3 defeat to Premier League runners-up Arsenal despite taking back-to-back first-half leads. However, they made amends with an overwhelming 3-0 victory over arch-rivals last weekend, scoring twice beyond the 80th minute to seal a morale-boosting triumph. Xavi Hernandez’s men have won two of their three pre-season games by 2+ goals ‘to nil,’ suggesting any potential success here could yield an emphatic scoreline. Interestingly, none of Barcelona’s last 12 matches have ended as a draw (W7, L5). But consistency has recently emerged as a genuine issue for the ‘Blaugrana,’ with their five most recent outings fluctuating between victories (3) and defeats (2).