Overview
With the last chance to prevent city rivals from breaking through the rankings, AC Milan took full advantage of it when defeating Inter Milan last weekend.
The derby at San Siro was decided by a surprising name - Pervis Estupinan. The Ecuadorian defender scored the only goal in the first half, helping Milan win the second Derby della Madonnina of the season.
However, the Serie A championship race is still very tense. Milan is currently 7 points behind Inter when the season is only 10 rounds left, meaning that Rossoneri almost has no right to make mistakes.
Previously, the 0-1 defeat to Parma ended Milan's 24-match unbeaten streak in Serie A. However, coach Massimiliano Allegri's team reacted strongly with two consecutive victories, both keeping a clean sheet.
Surpassing all expectations at the beginning of the season, Milan has won 60 points after 28 rounds. In the past 20 years, they have only achieved at least 63 points twice after 29 matches.
Another victory this week will help Rossoneri re-establish that impressive milestone. History is also supporting them as Milan has won six of their last nine encounters with Lazio in Serie A.
Milan can also regain confidence from the 1-0 victory over Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico in the Coppa Italia. However, in the last 12 encounters in Serie A, each team has won 4 matches.
While Milan is hoping to chase Inter, Lazio's season is very disappointing. Despite just defeating Sassuolo thanks to Adam Marusic's late goal, the capital team only has 37 points after 28 rounds - their worst record in this period since 2010.
Currently, Lazio is ranked 10th in the standings and faces the risk of missing the European Cup for the second consecutive season. They have also only won 2 in their last 8 matches in Serie A.
Not only is the performance on the field disappointing, the atmosphere at the Olimpico has also become tense. Fans' protests have affected home performance, while coach Maurizio Sarri is having a public conflict with President Claudio Lotito.
Before their third consecutive home match, Lazio - and especially Sarri - hope that fans will return to the stands to motivate the team in the important match against Milan.
Personnel situation
AC Milan still cannot have the services of Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Matteo Gabbia due to injury. However, the red and black team has received good news when Santiago Gimenez returned to full training after more than 4 months of rest due to an ankle injury.
In midfield, Adrien Rabiot will be absent due to suspension. Therefore, Samuele Ricci or Ardon Jashari are likely to be given opportunities in the away team's midfield trio, where Luka Modric still plays the role of conductor even though he is at the end of his career.
On Lazio's side, the attack is usually led by Daniel Maldini - a player who grew up from Milan's training academy and is the son of legend Paolo Maldini. In the most recent match, he scored the opening goal in the victory against Sassuolo.
Lazio still faces many personnel problems as Nicolo Rovella and Samuel Gigot are in the process of recovering, and Danilo Cataldi has to be sidelined due to a calf injury. Central defender Alessio Romagnoli is also not sure about his ability to play.
Expected lineup:
Motta, Marusic, Gila, Romagnoli, Tavares, Dele-Bashiru, Patric, Taylor, Isaksen, Maldini, Zaccagni.
AC Milan: Maignan, Tomori, De Winter, Pavlovic, Saelemaekers, Fofana, Modric, Ricci, Estupinan, Pulisic, Leao.
The match between Lazio and AC Milan takes place at 2:45 am on March 16 (Vietnam time).
