Normally, no one really cares about the Coppa Italia. Even
with tickets as low as €5, only about 20,000 people are expected to attend on
Wednesday. That is compared with more than 60,000 people who came to see
Ibrahimovic’s debut on a weekend. However, this time, perhaps more fans should
care. The winner of the Coppa Italia qualifies for the Europa League, and with
so many teams and so many points separating us from European spots, winning the
Coppa Italia might be our best opportunity for Europe next year. This could be
our Plan B.
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| I don't remember Salamon doing that when at Milan... |
SPAL are dead last in Serie A, absolute bottom of the table.
However in December, they knocked Lecce out of the Coppa Italia with a very
convincing 5-1 win. Yesterday, they lost 1-0 away to Fiorentina, where Semplici
matched Fiore’s 3-5-2. He lined up: Berisha; Cionek, Vicari, Felipe; Strefezza,
Murgia, Missiroli, Valoti, Igor; our old pal Petagna, and Di Francesco. He will
be missing D’Alessandro and Fares to injury. SPAL have one less day of rest,
having played on Sunday, but also have our other exes, Paloschi and Salamon,
who could come back to haunt us.
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| Sorry, Petagna, we need this one, old friend |
It’s really a shame that a single win means so much to Milan
right now, but the fact is that Saturday’s win was a massive boost in
mentality. Pioli will now have to decide if Ibrahimovic plays, and if so, how
much, as we will play again on Sunday. His health and form are so essential to
Milan, we will have to be very careful not to wear him out. Pioli will be missing
Duarte and Biglia still to injury, and I have not heard how Caldara and Kessie
are after Saturday’s match as of this writing.
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| Oh, yeah, Semplici, we picked up a new player, if you hadn't heard |
What should be a benchwarmer’s night’s dream will probably
be taken very seriously. The underdogs are the most dangerous, and we
absolutely need to win this match to go on to face Torino in the next round. It’s
not what we would have wanted to be taking so seriously at this time of the
year, but here we are. We need this win for morale and for a chance at the
Europa League qualification next season. Jump on the bandwagon for our Plan B.
This post inspired by the music of
Cigarettes after Sex
Coppa Italia Round
of 16
Milan vs. SPAL
Wednesday, January
15 • 18:00 CET
This match can be
streamed LIVE on ESPN+