Milan – Atalanta 15.09.2012

Milan aim to continue the good run after restoring the lost confidence thanks to the 3-1 away victory over Bologna,

whereas Atalanta hope to build on the 1-1 draw at Cagliari. Both teams are without several first team regulars, but the hosts should cope better thanks to the big squad Max Allegri has at his disposal.

Milan chiefs finally decided to re-juvenate what was one of the oldest squads in European football, as they allowed half a dozen senior players to leave the club on a free transfer. In came talented players such as Ricardo Montolivo, Bojan Krkic, Bakaye Traore and Francesco Acerbi, to name just a few, while Giampaolo Pazzini and Nigel de Jong arrived to add some much needed experience. Milan may have started the season with a home defeat to Sampdoria, but the 3-1 win over Bologna, in what was a very difficult away game, proved the Rossoneri are slowly finding their feet. With several important players back to the side, Max Allegri’s men are expected to see off Atalanta and edge closer to their title rivals.

Atalanta have done brilliantly to survive last season despite the six-point penalty, but the team have experienced new problems this term. The new two-point deduction seem to have had a negative effect on the squad as Orobici could only pick up one point from the first two games, meaning they are now on -1. This is probably having a detrimental effect on the players’ confidence, so the visitors cannot be expected to be at their best at San Siro. On top of that, they will be missing two key players, which is going to be a huge blow given that Atalanta don’t have such a big squad as their next opponents.

Milan will take this.