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AC Milan return to action in Serie A this weekend as they host Sampdoria at the San Siro on Saturday.
The hosts bounced back well from two back-to-back defeats with a 3-2 win over Fiorentina before the international break. They are currently six points behind city rivals Inter Milan at the top of the table. Inter have a game in hand over their cross-town rivals.
The visitors also returned to winning ways after five games before the international break. They recorded a 1-0 win over Torino in that game.
Also See: 10 highest-paid players in the Serie A this season (2020/21)
AC Milan vs Sampdoria Head-to-Head
AC Milan have faced the Genoa-based team 145 times across all competitions. As expected, they have been the better side in these encounters and have been victorious 78 times so far.
La Samp have won 35 times against the Milan giants and the two sides have shared the spoils on 32 occasions.
They last squared off at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium in December in Serie A. The Rossoneri recorded a 2-1 away win in the reverse fixture.
AC Milan form guide across all competitions: W-L-L-D-W
Sampdoria form guide in Serie A: W-L-D-D-L
AC Milan vs Sampdoria Team News
AC Milan
Davide Calabria is a long-term absentee for Milan following his knee surgery. Rafael Leao and Alessio Romagnoli trained individually and face late fitness tests.
The availability of Mario Mandzukic is doubtful, as there are reports of the player not extending his contract in the summer. Braham Diaz did not train for the Spain under-21 side and is a doubt for Saturday's game.
Ante Rebic will return after his two-match ban was reduced to one game, which he served against Fiorentina.
Injured: Davide Calabria, Rafael Leao, Alessio Romagnoli
Doubtful: Mario Mandzukic, Braham Diaz
Suspended: None
Sampdoria
Albin Ekdal and Ernesto Torregrossa won't be able to make the trip to Milan on account of muscle problems. Claudio Ranieri might be able to welcome back Lorenzo Tonelli if the defender passes a late fitness test.
Injured: Albin Ekdal, Ernesto Torregrossa
Doubtful: Lorenzo Tonelli
Suspended: None
AC Milan vs Sampdoria Predicted XI
AC Milan Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Gianluigi Donnarumma; Diogo Dalot, Fikayo Tomori, Simon Kjaer, Theo Hernandez; Franck Kessie, Sandro Tonali; Alexis Saelemaekers, Hakan Calhanoglu, Rade Krunic; Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Sampdoria Predicted XI (4-4-2): Emil Audero; Bartosz Bereszynski, Omar Colley, Alex Ferrari, Tommaso Augello; Antonio Candreva, Morten Thorsby, Adrien Silva, Jakub Jankto; Keita Balde, Fabio Quagliarella
AC Milan vs Sampdoria Prediction
Though Milan have lost a bit of steam in their title challenge, they have a lot of quality in their ranks at the moment. They will be looking to build on their impressive 3-2 win over Fiorentina in this home fixture.
Milan's home form might be a cause for concern at the moment, as they have lost four games at the San Siro compared to just one on their travels.
Sampdoria recorded their first win in six games last time around but might struggle to repeat the feat against the hosts on Saturday. We predict the game will end in a win for Milan.
Prediction: AC Milan 2-1 Sampdoria
Also See: Benevento vs Parma prediction, preview, team news and more | Serie A 2020-21
