AC Milan could be fielding a very young team against Cagliari in the Coppa Italia this evening as Stefano Pioli seeks to rest some of his senior players.
As has been reported by Tuttosport (via Milan News), there will be a raft of changes from the 1-0 against Sassuolo, with the Africa Cup of Nations also having an impact on Pioli’s decisions.
With Samuel Chukwueze leaving to join up with the Nigeria squad after this match, he is expected to start on the right wing in place of Christian Pulisic.
Given fans want to see Rafael Leao get his confidence back, it is a surprise that Pioli could also leave him on the bench. In his place, there is the potential for Chaka Traore to get minutes from the start.
He would not be the only young player on the pitch, as Jan-Carlo Simic is expected to start in the defence and Alex Jimenez could also get some minutes as he has impressed in the Primavera.
If Pioli uses a 4-2-3-1 formation, Luka Romero would be in line to start behind the striker, which is almost certainly going to be Luka Jovic rather than Olivier Giroud who could benefit from a rest.
Luka Romero at AM ? Interesting
Really looking forward for young lads to wipe Pioli’s eye