AC Milan vs Juventus Prediction, preview, team news, and more

The first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final is almost upon us. The two most successful teams in Italian history are set to go up against one another as seven-time European Cup winners AC Milan host the defending Serie A champions Juventus at the San Siro on Thursday night.

No club has won the Coppa Italia more times than Juventus, who have won this trophy 13 times. The Turin-based club won this trophy four consecutive times until last season when Lazio emerged victorious. Their opponents in this semi-final, AC Milan, have won this competition five times, with the last victory being all the way back in the 2003-04 season.

Both clubs are coming off a loss in their latest Serie A matches, and are looking to bounce back in what should be a very interesting matchup.

AC Milan vs Juventus head to head

These two teams have a storied rivalry as two of Italy's most historic clubs and have faced each other 230 times. Juventus have 91 wins over Milan's 66, and the former has been the more dominant team over the past decade as their continuous rise and dominance has run parallel with Milan's downfall. In fact, AC Milan has failed to defeat Juventus since 2016, when they emerged victorious in a 1-0 Serie A victory at the San Siro.

Juventus are currently level at the top of the Serie A table with 54 points after 23 games and are on course for a ninth consecutive Scudetto. They have not been in the best of form lately, however, with two losses in their last three league games. Manager Maurizio Sarri is in his first season with the team and is still finding out what is the best line-up and tactics for the club as he tries and leads them towards glory.

As for the hosts, it has been another disappointing campaign for Milan as they currently sit 10th in the table and are just coming off a cruel loss against bitter rivals Internazionale. However, the team has looked slightly rejuvenated since the arrival of Zlatan Ibrahimovic in January, and have managed to win three of their last five league games.

Juventus form (all competitions): LWLWWWW

AC Milan form (all competitions): LDWWWWW

AC Milan vs Juventus Team News

Juventus - Captain Georgio Chiellini should be making his return soon from a long-term injury, but he is not expected to feature in this game. Sami Khedira and Danilo are amongst the other absentees for Sarri. Paulo Dybala is pushing for a starting role in the team, but Gonzalo Higuain should retain his place in the first eleven, and Cristiano Ronaldo will lead the troops as he looks on to continue his fine goalscoring form.

Injured - Sami Khedira, Danilo, Georgio Chiellini, Merih Demiral

Doubtful - Federico Bernardeschi

AC Milan - Centre-back Leo Duarte is a long-term absentee who is not expected to return before the end of March. Rade Krunic is a doubt for this game, although Ibrahimovic should feature after a return from illness against Inter. Manager Stefano Pioli has an otherwise fit squad and will most likely name an unchanged line-up in this cup game.

Injured - Leo Duarte

Doubtful - Rade Krunic

AC Milan vs Juventus predicted line-ups

Zlatan scored against Inter but his team came up short. He will be looking for a victory against Juventus

AC Milan - Gianluigi Donnarumma; Davide Calabria, Simon Kjaer, Alessio Romagnoli, Theo Hernandez; Samu Castillejo, Frank Kessie, Ismael Bennacer, Hakan Calhanoglu; Rafael Leao, Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Juventus - Wojciech Szczesny; Juan Cuadrado, Matthias De Ligt, Leonardo Bonucci, Alex Sandro; Rodrigo Bentancur, Miralem Pjanic, Adrien Rabiot; Douglas Costa, Gonzalo Higuain, Cristiano Ronaldo