AC Milan will take on Sampdoria away from home this evening and they are clear favourites to win the game. If last season is anything to go by, though, it won’t be a walk in the park for the Rossoneri.
Stefano Pioli’s men are battling through an incredibly packed schedule and that’s why we are seeing quite a lot of rotation. It’s definitely needed and it’s an opportunity for the reserves to prove themselves, which is positive.
Tommaso Pobega will get the chance from start, for example, and he has good memories of facing Sampdoria. You can read our match preview here, while below are the best pre-game stats…
➤ Milan have won four of their last five Serie A games against Sampdoria (D1), without conceding a goal in the last two; the last time the Blucerchiati beat the Rossoneri in the top-flight was back in March 2019, 1-0 (Defrel’s goal) at Ferraris, under Giampaolo.
➤ Sampdoria have lost each of their last three Serie A home games against AC Milan; only once in the competition have they recorded four consecutive home defeats against the Rossoneri: in the period between 1963 and 1968.
➤ Sampdoria are – level with Montpellier – one of the two sides to have collected the most losses (16) in 2022 in the ‘top five’ European leagues; the Blucerchiati have only scored 21 goals in 24 Serie A matches in this period, 0.88 on average per game, the lowest considering the teams in both 2021/22 and 2022/23 Italian top-flight.
➤ Sampdoria have only picked up two points in Serie A this season and could equal their worst haul after six games in a top-flight campaign should they lose this match (two draws and four defeats in their first six also in 2013/14, however they did manage to avoid relegation).
➤ No team has lost fewer games than AC Milan (only one defeat – last January against Spezia) in the ‘top five’ 5 European leagues in 2022 – the Rossoneri have recorded 2.29 points on average per game this calendar year in Serie A: only Liverpool (2.40) and Manchester City (2.38) have a higher average this year.
➤ Only Atalanta (16) have registered more direct attacks than Milan (14) in Serie A this season – four for Sampdoria, only Empoli (three) have had fewer.
➤ Including the two goals they conceded against Verona, Sampdoria have conceded six first half goals in Serie A this season (no team has conceded more during the opening 45 minutes – Monza also six).
➤ No player has lost possession on more occasions than Sampdoria’s Abdelhamid Sabiri in Serie A this season (93 out of 287, 32%).
➤ Milan’s Rafael Leão has been involved in the most goals in Serie A in 2022: 19 (10 goals, nine assists); he has found the net twice against Sampdoria in the top-flight, coming in his last three games against the Blucerchiati.
➤ Tommaso Pobega scored his only brace in Serie A against Sampdoria at Ferraris, for Spezia, in May 2021 – the Blucerchiati are the only team against which the Italian midfielder has scored at least one goal and provided at least one assist in the top-flight (October 2021 for Torino).
