The biggest match in Europe this coming weekend sees AC Milan host Juventus in a blockbuster Serie A fixture. Juventus have had it all their own way in Italy for years now and are bidding to win their seventh consecutive league title this season. But a real pretender to their throne has emerged in the form of AC Milan, who spent £175 million on new players in the summer to try to catch up with their rivals. Bet on the match at BMR’s green-listed bookmakers.
So far it has not worked as Vincenzo Montella’s team have taken just 16 points from 10 games and are down in eighth place. Napoli, Inter and Roma have emerged as far more credible rivals for Juventus this season, but over the next few years Milan are expected to be the team to really threaten their dominance. This game will provide a great insight into how far they still have to go to close the gap on Juventus.
In an era where football clubs are prized accessories for billionaires, AC Milan was an obvious choice for a takeover. It is a famous club with a long and illustrious history and, crucially, it has a desirable location. Paris was already taken by the Qataris, and Roman Abramovich has west London locked down, so Milan – another fashion capital full of glitzy restaurants – looked extremely attractive to Chinese businessman Li Yonghong. He wasted no time after taking over the club this summer and splashed out on a clutch of stars, including Andre Silva, Andrea Conti and Hakan Calhanoglu.
But he needed a marquee signing, something to make world football stand up and take notice, and he pulled it off when AC Milan signed none other than Leonardo Bonucci from Juventus. Bonucci is arguably the world’s finest defender and was a key pillar of Juve’s fabled defence, which had dominated domestically for years and reached two Champions League finals. Bonucci apparently fell out with Juventus coach Max Allegri, and AC Milan swooped in to snap him up in a £38 million deal. Suddenly everyone started taking Milan very seriously indeed, and they were tipped as the team most likely to usurp Juventus this season.
It has not worked out and instead Napoli – a paragon of stability compared to their free-spending, squad-overhauling competitors – are top of the table. Juventus are starting to turn the screw, however, and are now just three points behind following back-to-back wins against Udinese and Spal. They need to keep the pressure up as Napoli are in sensational form, so Allegri’s men will be desperate for a win in this game.
Milan have been in dreadful form, but they ended a four-game winless streak by beating Chievo 4-1 in midweek. That should give them a little more confidence, but free-scoring Juventus will fancy their chances of taking three points from the San Siro at the weekend. They have lost a lot of defensive solidity since Bonucci’s departure, but they have more than compensated for it with their dazzling form in front of goal. Juventus have banged in an astonishing 31 goals in 10 games and Paulo Dybala and Gonzalo Higuain have been in lethal form. That duo will relish the opportunity to take on Milan’s leaky defence and Juventus should score a couple in this game.
Milan might well get on the score sheet, but they have not exactly been setting the world on fire with free-flowing football this season. They have been laboured in possession and it seems as though all the new faces are struggling to jell into an effective whole. Juventus can capitalise and they look a fantastic bet at 2.00 with bookmakers like Black Type, 1.95 with Ladbrokes and Bet Victor and 1.91 with Bet365 and various others to win this one.
For more value you could go for Juventus to win and both teams to score, which is 4.00 with Bet365, William Hill and various others, or just both teams to score at 1.89 with 188Bet and 1.80 with most others. Dybala has scored a goal every 67 minutes so far this season and looks a great option to score at any time in this game, at 2.05 with Ladbrokes and Coral.
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