Ante Rebic

Sky: Pioli ready to bench Leao against Lecce; Rebic set for first Milan start

AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli is set to give Ante Rebic his first ever start for the club against Lecce on Sunday, a report claims.

The Rossoneri will take to the field at San Siro for the first time under Pioli, who came in last week to replace Marco Giampaolo after he was sacked 111 days into his reign.

Most of the speculation in the build-up to the game has been about which formation and starting XI the former Lazio and Inter boss will use.

Sky Italia reported earlier in the week that Pioli is planning to use a 4-3-3, but that a key battle still remains in the attacking trident with two places up for grabs.

According to the latest from Sky – as cited by MilanNews.it – Krzysztof Piatek and Ante Rebic look set to get the nod to start alongside Suso.

The Polish forward is favoured over Leao despite scoring just once from open play in his last 13 games for Milan stretching back to April. It is a show of confidence from Pioli, who wants to get ‘il Pistolero’ firing again.

The report adds that Leao has been tried as a centre-forward and not as a winger, meaning Rebic will start on the left over Hakan Calhanoglu, who is viewed as his competitor.


READ MORE: Six reasons Milan fans should be optimistic about Pioli’s appointment

Tags AC Milan Ante Rebic
Serie A Standings

Live football scores . Current table, fixtures & results.