MN: Pioli essentially forced into selection choices vs. Chelsea with 12 absentees

AC Milan will battle Chelsea tonight at Stamford Bridge without a number of key players, but will hope to secure a positive result after the draw away at Red Bull Salzburg and the home victory against Dinamo Zagreb.

MilanNews writes that there are many absences due to injury with Mike Maignan and Theo Hernandez the ones that stand out above all, but the target remains to stay on top of the group in the Champions League and to show just how much the squad have grown as a collective.

Mike Maignan, Davide Calabria, Simon Kjaer, Theo Hernandez, Junior Messias, Alexis Saelemaekers and Alessandro Florenzi will all miss the game while Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Yacine Adli, Malick Thiaw and Aster Vranckx are all not on the squad list.

Pioli therefore will be practically forced to field the following formation: Tatarusanu in goal, Dest, Kalulu, Tomori and Ballo-Tourè in the back four; in midfield Tonali and Bennacer, then Krunic on the right wing, De Ketelaere as the playmaker and Leao as the left winger plus Giroud up front.