48′ DONNARUMMA MAKES THE SAVE! Bentancur gets on the end of Morata’s backheel flick and whacks a quick shot towards goal, only for Donnarumma to instinctively drop down to make the important stop!
46′ Juventus get the match restarted from the kick-off!
Pirlo is left with little alternative in the second half, as Juventus will be forced to come out an attack in search of an equaliser. A well-stocked bench sees the likes of Bernardeschi, Ramsey, Dybala and Kulusevski all ready for selection – though Dybala in Morata’s place seems likeliest, as the Spain international has done little to dovetail with Ronaldo in the opening half. For Milan, it’s a question of whether Pioli will feel comfortable with a one-goal advantage. With Tonali and Romagnoli available they have the options to defend, though Leao could prove clinical on the counter-attack as Juve continue to open up.
A nervy opening half received the injection it needed just before half-time, as Diaz’s curling effort high into the roof of the goal gives Milan a 1-0 advantage with 45 minutes still to play. The ramifications of the match seemed apparent to both sides – neither of whom wanted to make a crucial mistake early in the match. Juve had the first chance to open the scoring, but Chiellini was unable to put his header on target despite an absent Donnarumma. Milan, for their part, did precious little to trouble Szczesny, with Hernandez’s blocked cross their best chance at creation before the goal.
45′ + 3′ HALF-TIME: JUVENTUS 0-1 MILAN.
45′ + 1′ MILAN HAVE BROKEN THE DEADLOCK IN STYLE! What a goal! Calhanoglu’s free-kick falls to the far post for Diaz, who takes a touch to get past Cuadrado before unleashing a curling effort that nestles into the roof of the net! With a crowd of bodies in the way and Szczesny on the line, the on-loan winger from Real Madrid evades them all! 1-0 to Milan!
44′ The fourth official indicates two minutes will be added for stoppages.
42′ Hernandez goes on a rampaging run down the left flank, getting past both McKennie and Cuadrado en-route to Juve’s penalty area, but a deflection on the full-back’s cross puts it kindly into the arms of Szczesny.
40′ Ibrahimovic is forced to go off and receive treatment after an aerial duel between the Sweden international and De Ligt sees the Milan striker bleeding from the back of his head. As is ever the case Ibrahimovic doesn’t seem at all concerned, though there’s no doubt he’ll need to be looked at.
38′ Calhanoglu delivers a corner looking for Kjaer, but a massive leap from De Ligt ensures that the former Ajax centre-back is first to the ball.
36′ Calabria sends a long throw-in towards the penalty spot looking for Ibrahimovic, but the experienced Chiellini gets into a great position to clear the initial danger.
34′ Bentancur is allowed to slalom his way through the entire Milan defence before stepping into the penalty area. The midfielder winds up for a shot but Kjaer is in like a flash to close down the effort and get a crucial block.
32′ Juventus have scored at least two goals in 13 Serie A home matches this season, more than any other side.
30′ CLOSE FOR JUVE! Cuadrado sends his cross over the flailing Donnarumma towards Chiellini at the far post. With an empty net to aim into, the Juventus captain is unable to put his effort on target, heading the chance just past the post!
28′ It’s been an even contest as the match approaches the half-hour mark, with both sides needing to do more to fashion chances in front of goal. The nerves are most definitely evident as the significance of the match grows with every passing minute. Should the result remain a draw, Juve would be the happier of the two as they would remain in a Champions League spot.
26′ Juventus have won 15 Serie A meetings against Milan since 2011/12 (D1 L3), against no other side have they won more in this period (15 wins also against Lazio and Udinese, but with one more game played).
24′ After receiving a healthy dose of the magic spray, the influential left-back gets back onto the pitch, though he’s moving quite gingerly. With Chiesa and Cuadrado both attacking that wing, his fitness is key to Milan’s defence.
22′ Worrying signs for Milan as Hernandez is sent to the ground twice in three minutes, both for knocks to his knee. The second incident was a coming-together with Bentancur in midfield, which looks to be of some concern.
20′ Diaz gets another chance to strike at goal and does much better, hitting the target with a powerful, low strike that forces Szczesny into a diving save.
18′ OVER! Some incredible one-touch passing on the edge of Juve’s penalty area between Saelemaekers and Calhanoglu gets Diaz into the penalty area, but his shot hit on the swivel is sent well above Szczesny’s crossbar.
16′ Calhanoglu wins a free-kick, caught by a trailing leg in midfield by the recovering Bentancur. It’s a cynical one, but it does successfully slow down Milan’s counter.
14′ BLOCKED! Rabiot charges into the penalty area unmarked and blasts a shot from close range, repelled only by the sliding Kessie. The rebound falls to the Juventus midfielder, but an overhead kick attempt catches Calabria in the head – giving Milan a free-kick.
12′ De Ligt launches a pass down the right flank for Morata, who outmuscles Tomori and wins possession inside the 18-yard box, but his quickfire cross is repelled by Kjaer before the delivery could find Ronaldo at the far post.
10′ Diaz gets into a good position on the right and looks to play a one-two with Calhanoglu, but the Turkey international’s return is a poorly hit pass that allows Chiellini to get in front to shield the ball and take possession inside his own penalty area.
8′ Cuadrado’s free-kick to the edge of the six-yard box is read again by Ibrahimovic, who has been well-placed in defence early in the match.
6′ Milan are having their first real spell of possession, knocking it from right to left looking for early gaps. The eventual cross floated in from the right is poor from Calabria, allowing De Ligt to whack it away easily.
4′ Cuadrado takes a corner from the left to the penalty spot, but Hernandez manages to rise highest to get his head to the ball first to clear it away.
2′ An early corner for Juve is sent in by McKennie, but the low delivery is easy for Ibrahimovic to clear at the near post.
1′ Milan get the match underway from the kick-off!
Juventus make four changes from their 2-1 win over Udinese last weekend. Bonucci and Danilo are replaced by Chiellini and Chiesa, with Cuadrado dropping into defence. Rabiot gets into the midfield ahead of Bernardeschi, which pushes McKennie out into a wider position, while a like-for-like swap in attack sees Dybala dropped for Morata.
Milan make three changes from the XI that beat Benevento 2-0 last time out. Kjaer replaces Romagnoli at centre-back, while Calabria is in for Dalot at right-back. The final switch comes in the attack, where Diaz is preferred to Leao.
MILAN SUBS: Ciprian Tatarusanu, Diogo Dalot, Sandro Tonali, Mario Mandzukic, Ante Rebic, Alessio Romagnoli, Jens Hauge, Rafael Leao, Soualiho Meite, Pierre Kalulu, Rade Krunic, Matteo Gabbia.
MILAN XI (4-2-3-1): Gianluigi Donnarumma; Davide Calabria, Simon Kjaer, Fikayo Tomori, Theo Hernandez; Franck Kessie, Ismael Bennacer; Alexis Saelemaekers, Brahim Diaz, Hakan Calhanoglu; Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
JUVENTUS SUBS: Arthur, Aaron Ramsey, Paulo Dybala, Danilo, Leonardo Bonucci, Merih Demiral, Carlo Pinsoglio, Federico Bernardeschi, Dejan Kulusevski, Gianluigi Buffon.
JUVENTUS XI (4-4-2): Wojciech Szczesny; Alex Sandro, Giorgio Chiellini, Matthijs De Ligt, Juan Cuadrado; Federico Chiesa, Adrien Rabiot, Rodrigo Bentancur, Weston McKennie; Cristiano Ronaldo, Alvaro Morata.
With 15 minutes to go before kick-off, let’s take a look at how the two sides are lining up – starting with our hosts!
The remaining fixtures could also be a key factor in determining whether Juventus or Milan will make the top four, though both sides have difficult remaining ties. Pirlo’s side host Milan before travelling to Sassuolo and finishing their campaign at home against champions Inter, while Milan will spend two weeks in Turin playing Juventus and Torino, before closing their season at San Siro against qualification rivals Atalanta.
As many as five teams are still in the running for three Champions League spots, with only Inter having secured a place in next year’s elite European competition by virtue of their Scudetto win – wrapped up last weekend. Atalanta lead the rest of the pack with 72 points, with Napoli just behind them on 70. Lazio have also forced their way into the running after a 3-0 thrashing of Milan two weeks ago, though they remain five points back of the Rossoneri in 5th.
Milan and Juventus’ prospects of Champions League football next season could come down to tonight’s result as the Bianconeri welcome the Rossoneri to the Allianz Stadium, with both sides level on 69 points. Andrea Pirlo’s team lead their rivals by virtue of a superior goal difference with four matches remaining, having scored five more goals while conceding 10 fewer.
Hello and welcome to our LIVE commentary of the Serie A fixture between Juventus and Milan!
