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AC Milan
LecceSeven goals scored by AC Milan this season and every single one of them has arrived in the final thirty minutes of matches. That is not a coincidence, that is a team that takes time to warm up but is ruthless once it finds its rhythm. Fascinatingly, Lecce have conceded five of their seven goals this term within the first thirty minutes of kickoff. Two teams going in completely opposite directions when the clock matters most, meeting at San Siro on Sunday evening. The tactical subplot here writes itself.
Ruben Amorim is still finding his feet at the Rossoneri, and midweek brought his first competitive defeat in charge, a Europa League loss to Benfica that stung a little more given his history with the Portuguese club. But context matters. Milan came within inches of beating Juventus, then dragged a draw out of a game against Lazio when most teams would have crumbled. Lecce arriving at San Siro feels like the right fixture at the right time for Milan to reassert themselves.
This Serie A fixture takes place at the iconic San Siro in Milan, with the game serving as the final top flight match before the international break. The Rossoneri are the heavy favourites on home soil, and given what the record books say about these two sides meeting in Lombardy, it is not difficult to see why the bookmakers have priced it that way.
Milan are in good shape heading into this one. Amorim rotated his squad in midweek against Benfica, which means several key players come into Sunday fresher than they might otherwise have been. Lecce are not quite as fortunate, with a couple of their midfield options under a cloud.
Amorim looks set to restore several of his senior names after the midweek rotation. Modric coming back into the middle gives Milan considerably more craft and composure in the centre of the park, and the competition for those two support roles behind Ramos is genuinely interesting. Pulisic has a remarkable record against Lecce personally, five goals in five Serie A appearances against them, so the American could well force his way back into the starting eleven despite not having started a league game since April.
AC Milan: Maignan; Gila, De Winter, Pavlovic; Chukwueze, Modric, Musah, Moreira; Rabiot, Cisse; Ramos
Lecce: Falcone; Veiga, Siebert, Gabriel, Gallo; Coulibaly, Ilic, Maleh; Pierotti, Stulic, Monteiro
For Lecce, Di Francesco will likely lean on Lassana Coulibaly and Ivan Ilic to drive things from midfield in the absence of Berisha and Gandelman. Coulibaly has been electric in the opening weeks of the season with two goals and an assist, while Ilic has chipped in with two assists. Those two will need to be at their very best if Lecce are to cause any trouble whatsoever.
Milan’s form is a curious one to assess. On paper, one win from their last three looks modest. Dig deeper and it tells a different story. They were moments away from beating Juventus before settling for a point, they came from two goals down to draw with Lazio at the Olimpico, a result that showed real character, and then they came unstuck against an in form Benfica side in their Europa League opener. That is a tough run of fixtures by any measure, and supporters with a long memory will not be panicking just yet.
The slow start dynamic is the thing that stands out most with Amorim’s side. All seven of their goals this season have come in the final thirty minutes. Whether that is by design or a symptom of the team needing time to find its groove is unclear, but it does suggest that opponents who get something early could make things nervy at San Siro.
Lecce, meanwhile, have been genuinely impressive in patches. Four wins from their last six Serie A matches stretches back into the tail end of last season when they were fighting off relegation, and carrying that confidence into the new campaign has served them well. Six points from their opening league games puts them level with the likes of Napoli and Atalanta, which is a remarkable statement for a side tipped by many to go straight back down. Their 3-2 win over Monza was breathtaking at times, with Coulibaly bagging twice and Tiago Gabriel heading home to put Lecce 3-1 up inside 21 minutes. They can hurt teams. They just tend to do it more convincingly at home.
The historical record between these two clubs at San Siro is about as one sided as it gets. Milan have not lost to Lecce on home soil since the turn of the century, and their last four home meetings against the Salentini have produced nine goals without reply. That is an aggregate score of 9-0 in four games. You could be forgiven for thinking those numbers belong to a European tie against a minnow rather than a Serie A matchup.
Away from home, Lecce’s last league win against Milan of any kind came in April 2006, which is two decades of hurt for the southern club. They have also failed to score in four of the last five meetings between the sides. The head to head is not just unfavourable for Lecce, it is historically damning. That said, every record gets broken eventually, and Di Francesco’s side arrive with more momentum than many Lecce teams that have made this same trip in recent years.
The stats point overwhelmingly in one direction here. Milan at San Siro against a Lecce side missing key personnel, in a fixture where the hosts have been utterly dominant for over two decades. The slow burner nature of Milan’s attacking play combined with Lecce’s tendency to ship goals early makes for a genuinely interesting tactical picture, and the value lies in backing Milan to win while keeping an eye on the timing of goals in the second half specifically.
Lecce have shown they can score goals this season and Coulibaly in particular is a real threat, but they have failed to find the net in four of the last five meetings with Milan. The hosts are also keeping things relatively tight at the back. No BTTS feels like the right call here, with Milan winning to nil a genuine possibility given how sterile Lecce have historically been in this fixture.
Lecce will need to be physical and disciplined if they are to have any chance, and a Lecce midfield already thin on numbers could find itself chasing the game. Expect some cynical challenges as the evening wears on, particularly if Milan start to cut loose in the second half. Over three cards in this one looks a reasonable shout, with the visitors likely to pick up the majority of the bookings.
Given the 9-0 aggregate across the last four meetings and Milan’s tendency to turn the screw late, a 3-0 home win looks the most likely scoreline. The goals will probably come in that final third of the game when Milan find their rhythm and Lecce begin to tire without the depth they would normally have in midfield.
Milan at San Siro with a full strength attacking lineup pressing for goals will generate plenty of corner opportunities, particularly once they start to dominate possession in the second half. Lecce will sit deep and absorb pressure for long spells, which historically produces a high corner count for the home side. Over nine corners in the match looks like a comfortable target in this one.
| Market | Selection |
|---|---|
| Match Result | AC Milan to Win |
| Both Teams To Score | No |
| Total Corners | Over 9 Corners |
Milan’s historic dominance, a depleted Lecce midfield and the home side’s relentless second half pressure all point toward a comfortable clean sheet win with plenty of set piece action along the way.
This one has Milan written all over it. Amorim will want a response after the Benfica defeat, his squad is largely fit and rested in the right areas, and Lecce arrive at a ground where they have been completely outclassed for the best part of twenty years. Di Francesco’s side have been impressive in spells this season and they are not without quality going forward, but a trip to San Siro without Geubbels up top and with Berisha and Gandelman likely absent from midfield is a big ask.
The goals will come late, as they always seem to with this Milan side, but they will come. Lecce will work hard and stay compact, but once the Rossoneri find the opener, the floodgates have a habit of opening against this particular opponent. AC Milan 3-0 Lecce.