Preview: Cremonese vs. AC Milan
Fresh off the back of a stoppage-time victory over a resilient Spezia side, AC Milan visit the Giovanni Zini Stadium to take on Cremonese in round 14 of Serie A on Tuesday.
The home side, on the other hand, are the only side yet to pick up a win in the league this season and will head into the midweek matchup desperate to end this poor record.
While it might be too early to say, Cremonese are one of the favourites to go down this season as they currently sit 18th in the Serie A standings, one point above rock-bottom Hellas Verona.
Their underwhelming start to the campaign has been owing to their struggles at the defensive end of the pitch, where they hold the league’s second-worst record with 24 goals conceded already.
Massimiliano Alvini’s side put in a fine shift in attack, but their defensive frailties were highlighted once again as they played out a 2-2 draw against Salernitana when the sides squared off at the Stadio Arechi on Saturday.
Krzysztof Piatek and Lassana Coulibaly scored either side of David Okereke’s 12th-minute equaliser to hand the hosts a first-half lead before Daniel Ciofani rebounded home his missed penalty in the 89th minute to force a share of the spoils.
Cremonese have picked up six draws and lost seven of their 18 league matches so far to collect six points and sit 18th in the standings, three points adrift of 17th-placed Spezia outside the relegation zone.
Elsewhere, AC Milan ensured that they remained within touching distance of league leaders Napoli as they claimed a slender 2-1 victory over Spezia when the sides squared off at San Siro on Saturday.
Off the back of a 4-0 win over Salzburg in Group E of the Champions League on November 2, goals from Theo Hernandez and an 89th-minute strike from Olivier Giroud saw the hosts pick up a hard-earned victory.
Prior to that, AC Milan suffered a 2-1 defeat against Torino at the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino on October 30 which saw their run of four consecutive league victories come to an end.
Stefano Pioli’s side, who ended their 11-year Serie A title drought last season, have now picked up 29 points from 13 games to sit second in the league table, six points off first-placed Napoli.
AC Milan head into Tuesday unbeaten in five of their six away games in the league this season, picking up two draws and claiming three wins — with their defeat at the hands of Torino being the only exception.
Cremonese Serie A form:
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Cremonese form (all competitions):
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AC Milan Serie A form:
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AC Milan form (all competitions):
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We say: Cremonese 0-3 AC Milan
AC Milan head into Tuesday as firm favourites to walk away with all three points as they take on a floundering Cremonese side who are without a league victory this season. While we expect the hosts to put up a fight, Pioli’s side boast the firepower needed to get the job done and we are tipping them to come out victorious.