Week 9 Preview: Milan – Sassuolo

Week 8 after the international break was hoped to be a new start. For reasons that had mainly to do with fatigue Bacca was benched in favour of Luiz Adriano, the latter was not part of his national team set up. Whether or not that was justified is debatable but a switch to 4-3-3 when the players for the wings were the likes of Cerci was unlikely to work. Bacca was brought in in the second and it paid dividends quickly with a goal but not for the first time Milan squandered the lead and 1-1 was the final result. The week also featured questions, for the first time in his Milan career, about Lopez’s form. Needless to say, without the goalkeeper’s star performances the season may be unsalvageable no matter what.

Two more points dropped and Milan firmly in the bottom half of the table increased the pressure on the team and the coach.

Next up is Sassuolo featuring Milan killer Domenico Berardi. All indications are that the flawed 4-3-3 will persist but that Bacca is fit to start despite training alone for much of the week. 4-3-3, as usual, requires a mobile and creative attacking transition which has been lacking for years. Getting three points and moving up the table will require no mistakes at the back and a piece of skill or a good free kick or two.

Alex will likely start along side Romagnoli again, at Zapata’s (and Ely’s) expense, and the weak midfield could feature Poli from the start in the absence of the unfit Bertolacci.

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