Milan, Italy — AC Milan go face Inter Milan for the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-finals on April 2 at San Siro. The two city rivals don dey meet again after previous clashes including the Serie A derbies and the Supercoppa Italiana final. Dis season don show say Inter dey on top, leading Serie A with a three-point difference from Napoli, while Milan dey struggle in the ninth spot.
Despite Milan winning the Supercoppa Italiana earlier this year, them don fail to maintain consistency, especially since the managerial change with Sergio Conceicao taking over from Paulo Fonseca. Conceicao, who don bring in new players like Santiago Gimenez, Joao Felix, and Kyle Walker, still dey face challenges to reshape the team while Inter dey eye a treble after successful runs in league and cup competitions.
Dis match dey crucial for both teams. Milan want win to secure a place in the Europa League after slipping in the league, while Inter dey chase glory across all fronts. “Dis match be important as e go bring us closer to a final, to a title,” Conceicao talk ahead of the fixture.
The two teams don meet already thrice this season, with Milan winning twice and one draw. Their last encounter saw Milan secure a dramatic 3-2 victory in the Supercoppa Italiana, showing they fit perform in big moments. Though Milan showed strong performances in previous derbies, Inter dey on a strong form and dey fire on all cylinders.
In the build-up, Milan dey deal with injuries. Ruben Loftus-Cheek don undergo surgery for appendicitis, and Rafael Leao, who dey face some discomfort, expected to start after coming off the bench in their last match against Napoli. Conceicao don express confidence in his squad, as they seek to leverage their previous successes against Inter.
On the other hand, Inter also dey manage their own injury issues, notably with key player Lautaro Martinez likely to miss out. Manager Simone Inzaghi don confirm Martinez injury, expressing cautious optimism for his return. “We need to adapt, but we still dey determine to perform well as we face a tough challenge,” Inzaghi noted.
The predicted lineups show AC Milan looking to deploy a 4-2-3-1 formation with Mike Maignan in goal, flanked by defenders Kyle Walker and Matteo Gabbia with attackers like Christian Pulisic driving forward. Meanwhile, Inter, using a 3-5-2 formation, will depend on players like Marcus Thuram and Joaquin Correa in attack.
As AC Milan and Inter prepare to battle at San Siro, this matchup promises to be intense with both teams eager to secure a valuable victory that could define their season. The overall record favors Inter slightly, but history has shown that in derbies, anything fit happen.
The kickoff time for the first leg of this semi-final is set for 9 p.m. local time. All eyes will be on this clash as both clubs battle for a spot in the prestigious final.
