Supercoppa Italiana Preview: A.C Milan vs. Inter Milan
The 2010/11 Scudetto winners, A.C Milan, will take on last season’s Coppa Italia winners, Inter Milan, in a one-off Supercoppa Italiana game at the National Stadium, Beijing on Saturday, 06 August 2011 at 13:00 GMT.
The two teams will meet each other for the first time in the competition’s history.
It will be a must win game for either of the sides to boost their confidence ahead of the Serie A season. The two teams are joint most successful on the honours board of the competition with five wins each.
A.C Milan
Milan will feature in their first game of the competition since their 3-0 win over Lazio in 2004. http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Andriy-Shevchenko-c6014 scored a fantastic hat-trick to seal the win for Carlo Ancelotti’s side. Massimiliano Allegri’s men look stronger for the challenge after ending a seven year Scudetto drought last season.
Both teams are coming into this game subsequent to below average pre-season performances. Milan beat lower tier side, Solbiatese, 12-0 in their first pre-season game of the new campaign but finished fourth in the Audi Cup after suffering defeats at the hands of Bayern Munich and http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Internacional-c39573 on penalties.
Inter Milan
The Nerazzurri will feature in their seventh consecutive year in the fixture. Inter won the last year’s fixture by beating A.S http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Lazio-c39775 two years ago.
Inter’s preparations for the new season haven’t been what they would have hoped for. The Nerazzurri drew 0-0 against Turkish giants, Galatasaray, while they were trounced 3-0 by Manchester City recently. Though Milan have had the better off Inter in the last season’s meetings but their last five head to head fixtures certainly give them an edge over their fiercest rivals.
Team News
A.C Milan
The Italian Champions will be without the services of three of their new signings, as Philippe Mexes and Stephan El-Shaarawy will miss the game through injuries, while http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Taye-Taiwo-c34728 is suspended for the game.
The Rossoneri will definitely miss the influence of Andrea Pirlo in the central midfield. The Italian international left the Rossoneri to join Juventus this summer. Allegri will have a huge selection dilemma, as he has a huge squad to pick from.
Expected line-up: Abbiati, Abate, Nesta, T. Silva, Zambrotta, Gattuso, Van Bommel, Seedorf, Boateng, Cassano, Ibrahimovic
Inter Milan
Gian Piero Gasperini’s team have no major fitness concerns and have almost full squad available to choose from. Veteran midfielder, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Emiliano-Viviano-c12483 remains a long term absentee after picking up a horrific knee injury during the pre-seasons.
Inter are expected to hand debut to new signing, Ricky Alvarez, who will play in the left midfield role.
Expected line-up: http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Lucio-c22597, Samuel, Zanetti, Cambiasso, Alvarez, Motta, Sneijder, Eto'o, Pazzini
Players to Watch
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Thiago-Silva-c34903 (A.C Milan)
The Brazilian international was unarguably the best performer for Milan in the last season. The defender did not have the best of times in the recently concluded Copa http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/America-c38390 and will be looking to regain his top form before the season.
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Wesley-Sneijder-c36799 (Inter Milan)
The Dutchman has been linked with a move to Manchester United throughout the summer transfer window but he is looking to stay with Inter and is desperate to get his hands on the Italian Super Cup. His performance in the game might be the determining factor in deciding his future at the club because several pundits have suggested that he will not fit in Gasperini’s 3-4-3 setup.
Prediction
Milan hold the advantage given their superior defensive and attacking departments. However, derby games always hold equal chances for both teams. The Rossoneri might struggle to cope with the pace of the game with ageing midfielders in their squad and will certainly miss the services of Pirlo in the centre midfield role.
Milan 3-1 http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Inter-c39567
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