AC Milan vs Arsenal: 5 point preview

In perhaps the most enticing Europa League clash lined-up in the last 16, AC Milan host old foes Arsenal at the San Siro in the first leg this Thursday. Although the winds of change have blown over both camps since the last time they met - in the last 16 of 2012 Champions League - the tie continues to carry arguably the same level of anticipation as it did six years back. And for reasons of its own.

The sides enter the match in contrasting vein of forms, while history has its own say, at least on paper. But as they say, matches aren't decided on paper and Milan and Arsenal both have serious dispositions about the competition, even though pundits don't see them as clear favorites.

Nevertheless, let's delve into some of the important issues ahead of the clash.

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#1 Arsenal's confidence is at an all-time low

Arsenal have lost their last four games on the bounce

A run of four consecutive defeats in all competitions - including a pair of humiliating 3-0 losses on the trot to Manchester City - has knocked the daylights out of the Gunners. Whatever could possibly go wrong, has indeed gone wrong and clamors for Arsene Wenger's head have grown louder than ever.

The vision of empty seats towards the final few minutes of their match to the Skyblues last week is a testament to the growing resentment in the fanbase, and also to the problems brewing off the field, apart from just the ones on it.

So it wouldn't be wrong to suggest Arsenal are enduring one of their - if not the one - worst runs in the recent memory and the harder part is that they can't seem to do absolutely anything about it. This isn't the kind of state one would want to be in ahead of a crucial European tie, but Wenger's band of busted flushes have to deal with it regardless.

#2 Milan on a mini-revival under Gattuso

Gattuso has spurred AC Milan since arriving at the dugout

In a totally contrasting set of fortunes, the Rossoneris are enjoying their best spell of the season as Gennaro Gattuso's ambitions of reviving his club are fanned with each passing result.

If Arsenal is on an ignominious four-game losing run, Milan is unbeaten in the last 13, a period in which they've successfully fought off challenges from AS Roma, Fiorentina, Lazio (thrice) and also beat Ludogorets comfortably with a 4-0 aggregate margin in the previous round.

The maverick Italian's appointment as the chief has turned the table around and Milan is breathing a new life. Solid at the back and formidable in the midfield, Gattuso has transformed this team from stem to stern and in the process, also reinvigorated fading players such as Giancomo Bonaventura, Hakan Calhanoglu, and Fabio Borini.

Even if this unit is nowhere near the Milan side of 2012 that tore Arsenal apart in a 4-0 plonk, there are chances of driving the latter out, again. Real chances.

#3 A tale of two contrasting defensive units

The Arsenal defense has been in utter shambles recently

A bulk of Arsenal's abject form is down to its shambolic defense that has leaked 10 times in the last four games, six of which came against City in two games. But on all occasions, the Gunners were caught painfully off guard.

The center-back partnership of Shkodran Mustafi and Laurent Koscielny have completely switched off, whereas Sead Kolasinac has become more error-prone than ever. Plus, he's developed a penchant for yellow cards too.

The ease with which teams are slicing through the backline is jaw-dropping, to say the least. In fact, even a mid-table side like Brighton mustered 13 attempts in their 2-1 victory over Arsenal last Sunday. Such is the dire state of the Arsenal rearguard.

AC Milan on the other hand, have conceded only thrice since the turn of the year and none in the last six, a terrific defensive figure that includes clean-sheets against AS Roma and twice against the blistering Lazio. Reason? Gattuso has reverted to a 4-man defense, ditching the back-three that conceded 18 goals in the first 14 games.

At the heart of this is the defensive pairing of Leonardo Bonucci and Alessio Romagnoli, who've established a resounding partnership over the weeks and boast a kind of communication that their aforementioned Arsenal counterparts might want to take note of. And another robust showing on Thursday would hold them in good stead for the deciding leg at the Emirates.

#4 Patrick Cutrone's amazing goalscoring form

Patrick Cutrone has announced himself to the world

The Italian teen surely has to be one of the finds of the season. Coming through the ranks of the Milan academy, Cutrone burst onto the scene in the 3-0 win over Bologna in May last year, and although it ended with a booking, he has gone on to show his immense potential this season.

Just 20 years of age, Cutrone has netted 14 times in 33 appearances (11 of which have been from the bench) to quickly solidify his position as Milan's first-choice striker. He has not only kept Nikola Kalinic and Andre Silva waiting on the wings, but has also come up trumps in the big games too, knocking one each against Roma, Inter, Lazio, whilst also bagging another six in the European games.

Cutrone, at this rate, has to surely be one of the best young talents in the division and would lead the line once again against Arsenal, where his goals would prove pivotal to their chances of progressing.

#5 An exciting duel awaits

Another goal-fest on the cards?

If all the aforementioned points were to be summed up, this should be an enticing affair to witness. One can see this as a step down from their previous meeting which came at the same stage albeit in the Champions League, but AC Milan vs Arsenal is a duel that can regardless produce just as equal a measure of intrigue as for how it was back then.

Form dictates a Milan victory, but Arsenal can be so unpredictable at times, that you can't really write them off. Just ask Chelsea. Despite a dismal league campaign last term as well, the Gunners defeated the Premier League winners of last year twice to claim two trophies, while they'll also look back at some of the shock results they've picked in European nights despite the odds stacked heavily against them.

So anything can happen; the door's ajar for all sorts of possibilities despite glaring differences between the sides heading into the tie. And it's this unpredictability that serves to spice it up. An exciting duel awaits.