In the first leg of the Europa League 1/8 final match against AC Milan, Arsenal came out as the winning side. The match was played at San Siro, AC Milan’s home ground, meaning that the Gunners have the goal-difference rule on their side as well. What this means is that in order to advance to the next round, AC Milan need to score at least three times in London. Will they manage to do that? Find out in this Arsenal vs. AC Milan match preview, at the end of which you’ll also get a couple of betting tips.
Arsenal
It seems that the 2:0 win against AC Milan came at the right moment for Arsene Wenger’s lads. Before that game, they were in a terrible run, with four defeats in a row. However, it seems that they’ve managed to leave the poor form behind. Just a few days after the win in the Europa League, they’ve managed to beat Watford 3:0 in the Premier League.
Obviously, Arsenal’s run in the English top tier hasn’t been that impressive. They’re currently on the 5th spot on the table, which isn’t that bad but their ambitions were much higher. Still, if they manage to do well in the Europa League, they can salvage the season. To be frank, there aren’t many other teams left in this competition that have better players than Arsenal.
Speaking of Arsenal’s manpower, no one can deny their talent. They have a number of fantastic players in the squad, who seem capable of playing well against any team. Actually, they’ve proven their quality in the clash with AC Milan, which saw them perform fine in defensive duties, which hasn’t been one of their strong sides this season.
AC Milan
Although this side has been fairly impressive in the Italian Serie A recently, they failed to show their quality in the Europa League duel with Arsenal. They still have a chance to turn in their favor, but not many of their fans are actually optimistic. Scoring more than two goals against Arsenal seems very difficult.
However, considering AC Milan’s away from this season such a scenario doesn’t seem impossible. They’ve won each of their previous 5 away matches and are without a defeat away from home since December. Another thing that gives them confidence is that AC Milan have been great when considered the underdogs. This season they beat some pretty strong teams like Lazio, Inter, and Fiorentina.
As they got nothing to lose, I expect them to play very offensively on Thursday evening. AC Milan’s manager will probably have to choose a pretty attacking-minded squad not just because they need to win but also because they have several injured defenders. In fact, both Milan’s right-backs, Abate and Calabria, are struggling with injuries, so the chances are that Fabio Borini, who’s an attacker, will have to take that role.
Team News
Arsenal absentees:
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (not eligible to play)
- Santi Cazorla (injury)
- Alexandre Lacazette (injury)
- Hector Bellerin (doubtful)
- Nacho Monreal (doubtful)
- Shkodran Mustafi (doubtful)
AC Milan absentees:
- Ignazio Abate (doubtful)
- Davide Calabria (doubtful)
Probable Lineups
Arsenal: Ospina – Koscielny, Elneny, Kolasinac, Chambers – Wilshere, Xhaka, Ramsey, Ozil, Mkhitaryan – Welbeck
AC Milan: Donnarumma – Bonucci, Romagnoli, Rodriguez, Borini – Kessie, Biglia, Bonaventura, Calhanoglu, Suso – Cutrone
Arsenal vs. AC Milan Match Prediction
AC Milan have no other alternative but to attack from the very beginning. Can Arsenal defense hold their lines and prevent the Italian side to score? I don’t think so. I believe that we’ll see a couple of goals in this match, probably on both ends.
Arsenal vs. AC Milan Betting Tips
Over 1.5 Goals @1.22 (bet365)
Over 0.5 Goals in the First Half @1.35 (bwin)
BTS @1.61 (bet365)
