AC Milan – Arsenal Prediction & Picks (08.03.2018)

Milan and Arsenal meet at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, in a match for this phase of the UEFA Europa League (8th Finals). There is no record of direct confrontations between these two teams in the last 3 years. The last match was played on 06-03-2012 and ended with the score: Arsenal (3-0) Milan. In this game the home factor may be decisive, as Arsenal presents considerable differences in their results at home and as a visitor.

Milan:

The home team reaches this stage of the UEFA Europa League (8th Finals) after having eliminated Ludogorets, after a home win by (1-0) and a win by (0-3) away in the tie previous. This is a team that usually maintains its competitive levels in home and away matches, since in the last 30 matches they register 6 wins, 5 draws and 4 losses in away matches, with 24 goals scored and 16 conceded; against 7 wins, 5 draws and 3 losses at their stadium, with 15 goals scored and 9 conceded. In the last game they played, for Coppa Italia, they beat Lazio away by (4-5), in the shoot-out on penalties. In the last 6 home matches for the UEFA Europa League, Milan have won 5 and tied 1.

For this competition, he does not lose in his stadium 6 games ago. Their attack has scored regularly, since they have scored goals in 7 of the last 10 matches for this competition. In the last 20 home matches for all competitions there is 1 period that stands out: they have conceded 5 of their 13 goals between minutes (16′-30 ‘).

Milan returns to play at home, after two consecutive exhibitions away from their fans, which must be satisfied with the performance of the club, since it is undefeated thirteen matches, taking into account all the competitions it is playing, and has just guaranteed Qualifying for the Coppa Italia final, by defeating Lazio away from home in a shoot-out on penalties. With that result, there are already six games without suffering any goal, which shows the strength of the defensive system. Before that duel against Lazio, the team had won a beautiful victory away from home, against Roma, in a game valid for the Italian league, which now occupies the seventh position. To get here, the Italians eliminated the Ludogorets, which they achieved with two victories. For this duel, the coach is expected to organize the team in a 4-3-3, with a highlight for Biglia in the central zone.

Arsenal:

The away team comes to this stage of the UEFA Europa League (8th Finals) after a home loss by (1-2) and a win by (0-3) with Östersunds FK. This is a team that usually makes good use of the home advantage, stronger with the help of its supporters, since in the last 30 matches they register 4 wins, 4 draws and 7 losses in away matches; against 8 wins, 3 draws and 4 losses at their stadium. In their last match, for the League, they got an away loss against Brighton & Hove Albion by (2-1). In the last 4 UEFA Champions League matches they played against Arsenal, they won 3 and lost 1. Their offense has scored frequently, since they have scored goals in 6 of the last 8 matches for this competition.

Arsenal is going through a very different phase from that of its opponent, taking into account that it comes from four consecutive defeats, being that in two of them it was not possible to remove the zero of the score and in that period it lost the League Cup, when being thrashed by 0x3 for Manchester City. Now, the visiting team comes from a defeat for the English championship, in which it occupies the sixth position, in a match in which it had a good performance, but was betrayed by the failures of the Čech goalkeeper, which gave the victory to Brighton . Before reaching the second round of the Europa League, Arsenal needed to go through the Swedish Östersunds FK, which he achieved with a win away from home and a defeat to his fans. The 4-3-3 must be the tactical formation used in this duel, with highlight for Özil in the offensive sector.