After starting AC Milan’s mid-week Coppa Italia clash against Cagliari, Luka Jovic will return to the bench, with Olivier Giroud set to return to the Rossoneri’s starting lineup. In his pre-match press conference, Stefano Pioli gave insight into the decision.
After scoring a brace in the Coppa Italia, Pioli is likely to have experienced a headache about who to start in Milan’s weekend fixture.
On one hand, there is Jovic, who has been one of the most in-form Serie A strikers since December, scoring five times in all competitions, the most of any Serie A player in this time. The Serbian has refound his feet, his confidence, and the back of the net.
On the other, there is Giroud, who has experienced a rough patch in front of goal in recent weeks, with only one Serie A goal since November 11. While he has provided his teammates with assists, there are arguments that Jovic should instead lead the line.
In Stefano Pioli’s pre-match press conference, he spoke about his forward options and the reasoning behind starting Giroud, and his full comments can be found here.
Why will Jovic not start tomorrow?
“I’m lucky to have two centre-forwards like this. The decisions are never definitive given that one of the two will be ready to take over, either to play with his teammate or to replace him. I hope that both will continue to be two important points of reference.”
