AC Milan are looking to respond after two consecutive defeats when they host Atalanta tonight, and they will also seek revenge against a side that has beaten them twice this season already.
Milan advanced to the Round of 16 of the Europa League on Thursday despite losing the game against Rennes 3-2, winning on aggregate 3-5, and before that they lost 4-2 away against Monza which means a response is needing.
You can read our pre-match preview of the game, while below are the best stats…
➤ Atalanta have won three of their last nine matches against Milan in Serie A (D2 L4), including the reverse fixture (3-2); under Stefano Pioli’s management, only Inter (four) have defeated the Rossoneri more times than La Dea in the competition.
➤ Milan lost the reverse fixture against Atalanta (3-2) and have not lost both seasonal matches against La Dea in Serie A since the 2007-08 season, when Carlo Ancelotti and Luigi Delneri were the respective managers.
➤ Milan have won their last two home games against Atalanta in Serie A, keeping clean sheets, and only once have they achieved three consecutive home victories against the Bergamo side with clean sheets under the same manager, doing so between 1992 and 1995 with Fabio Capello.
➤ Despite the loss in the last round, Milan have secured at least 52 points after 25 games played for the third time in the last four seasons: as many times as in the previous 16 participations of the Rossoneri in the tournament after as many matches played.
➤ Since the beginning of the 20th matchday, no team has won more points (15), scored as many goals (17), and conceded fewer goals (two) than Atalanta in Serie A; in particular, in these last five matches, La Dea have scored as many goals as in the previous 11 league games.
➤ Atalanta have scored six goals from corners in this league season, only Milan have done better so far: seven, including one in the reverse fixture against La Dea, with Olivier Giroud scoring from Alessandro Florenzi’s assist.
➤ Atalanta (10) and Milan (12) are the only two teams in this championship to have scored at least 10 goals from the bench; both also scored with substitutes in the last matchday: La Dea with Mitchel Bakker and the Rossoneri with Olivier Giroud and Christian Pulisic.
➤ Teun Koopmeiners has nine goals, seven of which away, in all competitions in 2023/24 and could reach double figures in goals for the second consecutive season; the Dutchman has also been involved in three goals (two goals, one assist) in the two matches between Atalanta and Milan this season, scoring a decisive brace in the Coppa Italia encounter (2-1 at the Meazza, January 10, 2024).
➤ Olivier Giroud is the player who has scored the most goals (four) against teams currently in the top six positions in the league this season; the Frenchman, with 12 goals overall in this Serie A, is just one short of his best scoring season in the competition (13 goals in 33 appearances in 2022/23).
➤ This match will feature the only two midfielders in Serie A who have scored more than five goals and provided more than five assists this season: Charles De Ketelaere (six goals and six assists for the Belgian owned by Milan) and Christian Pulisic (seven goals and six assists).
