Empoli vs AC Milan 28/09/18
28 September 2018
After getting stunned by the 91st-minute equalizer from Emiliano Rigoni in last weekend’s encounter with Atalanta, AC Milan will be traveling to the Metropolitan City of Florence to face off against Empoli, with the match scheduled to take place at the Stadio Carlo Castellani.
The Azzurri have opened the season with a devastating 3-0 loss to Cittadella in the Coppa Italia first-round, after which they outplayed Cagliari on the Serie A opening matchday. However, ever since a 2-0 win over the Rossoblu, Aurelio Andreazzoli’s side have been struggling to find the right form, as they currently sit 1-goal away from the relegation zone, with three defeats and a draw in the last four league matches. Although Andreazzoli hopes to see his players reacting after two successive losses, a fact that they failed to beat AC Milan on home soil for over a decade, certainly makes things even more complicated for a team that returned to the top flight this year.
The Rossoneri, on the other hand, are involved in another turbulent period, as they failed to secure a victory in the previous two league encounters with Atalanta and Cagliari, while barely managing to beat Luxembourg outfit Dudelange in the Europa League opener. Additionally, on the opening Serie A fixture, Gennaro Gatusso’s side lost 3-2 to Napoli despite having a 2-goal lead 35 minutes before the final whistle, while their only triumph came against AS Roma at the Stadio San Siro thanks to Patrick Cutrone’s 95th-minute winner.
Luca Antonelli, Manuel Pasqual, Lorenzo Polvani, and Alejandro Rodriguez are ruled out with injuries, while Miha Zajc won’t be playing after picking up a red card in a 3-1 defeat against Sassuolo last weekend. Meanwhile, Ivan Strinic and Andrea Conti are yet to return to full training in the visiting squad, while the appearance of Patrick Cutrone and Mattia Caldara still hangs in the balance.