AC Milan and Torino begin their Serie A campaign with a clash at San Siro on Saturday. Milan will be keen to put up a proper title challenge this season and will be confident of making a positive start in front of their fans.
AC Milan may have finished second last season but they were nowhere close to mounting any kind of title challenge. They were 19 points off the pace and will be keen to put up a better fight this term.
It has been a summer of change for AC Milan, who now have Paulo Fonseca as the man in charge while Alvaro Morata has replaced Olivier Giroud as the main striker. The Rossoneri were unbeaten in preseason and claimed victories over the likes of Manchester City and Real Madrid before beating Monza 3-1 in their final warm-up fixture.
Torino secured a top half finish last season but their campaign was generally unremarkable. They were never in contention for any of the significant positions and will be looking to set that right this term.
Like AC Milan, Torino are also coming into a transitional season under new manager Paolo Vanoli, although key players like Duvan Zapata and Antonio Sanabria are still around. They were also unbeaten in pre-season and travel to San Siro off the back of a 2-0 victory over Cosenza in the Coppa Italia first round.
How the bookies view it: Milan all the way
AC Milan have been installed as overwhelming favourites and are priced at 7/10 by bet365 to claim the win. An unlikely victory for Torino is valued at 4/1 by Betfred, who is also offering odds of 11/4 for a draw.
Head to head: San Siro always a fortress
AC Milan have a 24-6 advantage with 19 draws from 49 previous matches against Torino. Although Torino won 3-1 at home in the most recent fixture back in May, the Rossoneri have won seven of the last eight meetings at San Siro, including a 4-1 victory last season.
Players to watch: Eyes on Leao
Rafael Leao was not at his best last season but still managed to score nine times in the Serie A. The forward will be targeting an improved campaign this term and could be backed to score on Saturday at 9/5 with Betfred.
Torino have some attacking quality of their own, particularly with Duvan Zapata, who was their top scorer last season with 12 Serie A goals. The Colombian striker was on target in last week’s Coppa Italia and could be worth keeping an eye on at 12/5 with Betfred.
Provable line-ups
Christian Pulisic sat out AC Milan’s final warm-up fixture and is likely to miss Saturday’s opener. Alvaro Morata could be set for his debut and should feature in attack alongside Rafael Leao and Samuel Chukwueze.
The attacking partnership of Antonio Sanabria and Duvan Zapata proved productive for Torino last season and both men should start on Sunday. Adam Masina should start in defence while Karol Linetty is expected to hold the fort in midfield.
AC Milan: Maignan, Hernandez, Thiaw, Gabbia, Calabria, Reijnders, Musah, Chukwueze, Loftus-Cheek, Leao, Morata
Torino: Milinkovic-Savic, Masina, Saul Coco, Vojvoda, Lazaro, Ilic, Linetty, Ricci, Bellanova, Sanabria, Zapata
Anything else catch the eye?
The last two matches between AC Milan and Torino have produced over 3.5 goals, which is priced at 9/4 by Betfred. Over 2.5 goals could also be considered at 10/11 by Betfred, who is also offering 5/6 on both teams to score.
AC Milan scored in both halves in the last two meetings at San Siro and could be set for a repeat at 13/8 with Betfred.
This Serie A match between AC Milan and Torino will be played on Aug 17, 2024 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best AC Milan vs Torino prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
