AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli is considering starting both Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Mario Mandzukic against Inter in the derby, a report claims.
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Tuttosport (via PianetaMilan) reports that the duo could play together on Sunday afternoon as Pioli may opt for a change in formation and to have two ‘panzers’ leading the line.
The match tomorrow afternoon in Belgrade against Red Star in the Europa League will be an important test regarding the idea as Mandzukic will start and his physical condition will be evaluated.
The defeat on Saturday evening against Spezia provided alarm in this regard as some key players are not in great athletic condition and it left Ibrahimovic isolated, so the Swede was unable to convert any chances as he didn’t get any.
Zlatan in the usual approach would be left to try and dominate Milan Skriniar, Stefan de Vrij and Alessandro Bastoni and it could be a difficult afternoon for the 39-year-old, even if he has scored three goals already in the derbies so far this season.
Pioli’s idea is to wait for Calhanoglu to recover fully and to move to a more robust and square 4-4-2 formation with Ibrahimovic and Mandzukic as the forwards.
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