The tie could not have come at a better time for Juventus, with Milan currently suffering from a number of injuries including their talismanic yet troublesome striker Mario Balotelli who will continue to serve his three match suspension as a result of a red card against Napoli.
However former Juventus forward Alessandro Matri who joined the Rossoneri back in August is set to lead the line along with Robinho against his former side. Even though the 29 year old is yet to open his goal account for his new club, he believes he can turn things around when his team faces Juventus and has further indicated that he will celebrate if he gets his name on the score sheet.
"I think I would celebrate, I don’t think that would be a sign of disrespect," he said
"Scoring means celebrating for me. I did so against Cagliari so I don't see why I should not against Juventus.
"I have a good relationship with many of the Juventus players, a few have sent me text messages encouraging me because I'm struggling to score.
Pressure seems to be piling up on Antonio Conte despite the fact that Juventus have till now enjoyed an unbeaten run in the league and have managed to win all of their last three matches.
However a disappointing run in Europe which has seen the Old Lady draw both of their Champions League matches has seen the Bianconeri come under a lot of criticism and Juventus’ Italian coach has revealed that he anticipated such criticism being hurled at his side.
"We seem to be in this situation where if we don’t win then people say we’re worthless, but I understand that,” Conte said.
"We are well aware that we can always improve, especially at the start of the season, but the same people panicking now are the ones who a few weeks ago said we’d be unstoppable."
Conte’s counterpart Massimilano Allegri has also reiterated his discontent of the criticism being thrown at his side and also that on his opponents.
"I am utterly sure the lads are up to the task, then the result depends on many elements," Allegri told reporters on Saturday. "It is not a test for us, but a fascinating game between two teams who are separated by eight points," he said.
"At the moment, there has been unfair criticism of both Juventus and Milan.
Match Facts
- AC Milan have conceded at least two goals in their last three away matches in the league
- Juve have won with a margin of one goal in the last three home games in Serie A
- Juventus have won eight of their last nine home games in the league
- Milan and Juventus have met on 156 occasions in the league, Juventus have won 54 of these and Milan 48
- Juventus have drawn and lost against AC Milan more than any other side in Serie A.
- There has only been a single draw in the last eight league meetings between the two sides, Milan have won four and Juventus three
- Milan have not managed to score more than one goal against the Old Lady in their last six league encounters
- Only one team has managed a win at Juventus Stadium in 2013 (Sampdoria on 6th January), since then Conte’s men have won nine and drawn two matches in the league.
- Milan are yet to score an away victory in the league this season with two draws and a loss so far
- Juventus have had the highest amount of ball possession up till now in Serie A (61.5%)
- Juventus’ star signing Carlos Tevez is the only player in Serie A to have hit the woodwork thrice and has also played more passes in the opponent’s box than any other player in the league (39)
Where to watch the match live
LivesoccerTV will keep you updated with live scores as the match kicks off at the Juventus Stadium. For complete details of live streaming and TV listings, go here:
Juventus vs Milan live streaming online, in HD on TV - October 6, 2013
Team News
AC Milan
Injuries keep piling up for AC Milan who are set to be without Kaka (thigh), Stephan El Shaarawy (foot) whereas Giampaolo Pazzini is yet to recover from the knee injury he suffered back in May. Mario Balotelli on the other hand will continue to serve the three match ban he suffered as a result of a red card in the 2-1 defeat against Napoli.
Riccardo Montolivo will however give AC Milan a timely boost, the 28 year old made a return from injury in the 1-1 draw against Ajax in midweek and will be in contention to start against Juventus.
Juventus
Antonio Conte faces no fresh injury concerns but the Italian might be tempted to reshuffle his side with the likes of Sebastian Giovinco and Claudio Marchisio pushing for starting berths.
Probable starting eleven
Juventus:
Buffon; Barzagli, Bonucci, Chiellini, Lichtsteiner; Vidal, Pogba, Pirlo, Isla, Quagliarella; Tevez
AC Milan:
Abbiati; Zaccardo, Zapata, Mexes, Constant; Poli, De Jong, Muntari, Montolivo, Robinho; Matri
