Stefano Pioli explains why he decided to transform Milan to a 3-5-2 formation and drop Rafael Leao again for the Derby della Madonnina against Inter. ‘We needed to create more density.’

It kicks off at San Siro at 19.45 GMT.

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s Serie A games on the LIVEBLOG.

The Rossoneri are in crisis going into this weekend, conceding nine goals in their last two Serie A games, while they were beaten 3-0 by Inter in Riyadh for the Supercoppa Italiana last month.

“We prepared well this week, but we need to start strong, play with sharpness, intelligence and balance for the entire match,” Pioli told DAZN.

The coach has decided to transform their tactics from 4-2-3-1 to a 3-5-2, the first time Milan have started a competitive match with three at the back since Gennaro Gattuso in the April 2019 Coppa Italia semi-final defeat to Simone Inzaghi’s Lazio.

“Our figures in the recent games showed we were struggling badly when conceding so many goals, so we needed to create more density to protect the defence. That doesn’t take away from the fact we also need to create attacking situations and take the initiative, which is what we intend to do.”

Pioli also dropped Rafael Leao to the bench for the second game in a row, choosing an all-new partnership of Divock Origi and Olivier Giroud.

“I chose to play with two strikers close together, for those characteristics I felt Origi and Giroud were more suited, while Rafa will certainly be of use as the game goes on.”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Tickets Kit Collector