Milan come into this match with confidence, playing steadily
better and now having won two in a row. It is also Milan’s 120th birthday
celebration, so there will be a lot of Milan legends there, with a Walk of Fame
scheduled for halftime. The players will need to focus, and as Pioli says, play
with intensity for all 90 minutes against 14th place Sassuolo to earn a third
consecutive win. If they do manage to pull it off, there will be a party at San
Siro.
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| Intensity |
De Zerbi’s side have struggled this year, with four wins,
three draws, and seven losses and a game in hand. They also just got knocked
out of the Coppa Italia by former Milan player-turned-coach Massimo Oddo’s
Perugia. Last weekend, they held Serie A’s Cinderella team of the year,
Cagliari, to a 2-2 draw, despite Berardi missing a penalty. For that matchup,
De Zerbi lined up Turati; Toljan, Romagna, Marlon, Kyriakopoulos; Magnanelli,
beloved ex-Milan Locatelli; Berardi, Djuricic, Boga; and Caputo. De Zerbi will
be missing Chiriches, Consigli, and Defrel to injury.
Pioli is now apparently proclaimed a hero after the hashtag
#PioliOut trended before he even signed for Milan. He certainly has stabilized
the mentality, and you can see it grow a little more with each match. He will
be missing Duarte, but may have Caldara back finally, after his long injury.
The goal will be to increase that mentality even more, especially after back to
back wins, and continue winning and hope that we can possibly catch up to those
top four spots.
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| A perfect party includes celebrations |
Sassuolo tragically lost their owner and lifelong Milan fan,
Squinzi earlier this year, followed shortly thereafter by his wife. Let’s hope
that his Milan fandom will smile from above upon the team of his heart, not the
team of his wallet.
Certainly, a win with all of those ex-Milan players
attending would be a great gift for a glorious club celebrating 120 years.
Particularly after the past ten years of decline and so many changes in
ownership, management, and on the bench. It is impossible to tell what the
future holds for Milan at this point, however if they take three points on
Sunday, there will certainly be a party at the San Siro.
This post inspired by the music of
Fishbone’s “Party at Ground Zero”
Serie A Week 16
Milan vs. Sassuolo
Sunday, December
15 • 15:00 CET (9am EST)
This match can be
streamed LIVE on ESPN+