Venezia Vs AC Milan Prediction: Armed With Derby Euphoria, Rossoneri Ready For Gas At Stadio Penzo

JAKARTA - AC Milan are in high euphoria after a sensational victory at the Derby della Madonnina in the middle of last week. Now, the Rossoneri are shifting their focus to Serie A by traveling to Venezia's headquarters, Sunday, April 27, in an effort to maintain their positive momentum ahead of the Coppa Italia final.

Milan successfully confirmed a place in the top Coppa Italia party after beating city rivals Inter Milan on aggregate convincingly 4-1. After drawing in the first leg, Sergio Conceicao's troops performed outstanding in the second leg, silencing the Nerazzurri with a landslide score of 3-0 at the San Siro. Luka Jovic became a hero through his inspiring performances, while Tijjani Reijnders again listed his name on the scoreboard.

Despite advancing to the final, Milan's journey in Serie A this season is far from satisfactory. The defeat to Atalanta last week saw their chances of breaking into the Champions League zone almost closed. Now, the Rossoneri are stuck in ninth place, five points adrift of Fiorentina in eighth place, and facing intense competition from several other teams to just get tickets to European competition next season.

Coppa Italia's victory is Milan's only realistic way of returning to the European scene, especially given the growing speculation about Conceicao's future which may end in June.

On the other hand, Venezia is also fighting for their own destiny. After being seen almost certainly relegated in February, Eusebio Di Francesco's side showed an extraordinary fighting spirit with only one loss in their last eight matches. Even so, six of the eight matches ended in a draw, including against Empoli last week when a win that was in sight disappeared after conceding in the final minutes.

Venezia is now only one point away from the safe zone, and the remaining five matches will be a big gamble to stay in the highest caste. However, facing Milan is not an easy task for this team from Venice. In the last four meetings, they have always lost and conceded a total of 13 goals, including a 0-4 defeat at the San Siro last September.

In the Milan camp, Sergio Conceicao is expected to maintain a successful 3-4-3 formation in the Derby della Madonnina. However, there is a possibility that some players will change. Matteo Gabbia, who suffered a neck injury against Inter may have to miss, opens up opportunities for Malick Thiaw to appear as a starter in the back.

For the front line, Luka Jovic, who has just become a derby hero, is likely to remain the first choice, but Tammy Abraham and Santiago Gimenez are also ready if needed. Emerson Royal still has to pull over, but good news comes from Kyle Walker who has returned to full training after elbow surgery.

Meanwhile, Venezia still lost main goalkeeper Filip Stankovic who was injured, so Andrei Radu will return to guard their goal. Radu has an interesting story, played for Inter and was part of the moment when Milan stole the Scudetto title from their city rivals. Richie Sagrado and Michael Svoboda are also still sidelined with injury. On the front lines, Daniel Fila is back on the line after being suspended and will compete with Christian Gytkjaer and Mirko Maric to fill the striker post.

Seeing the performance and motivation of the two teams, AC Milan is clearly a favorite to get the three points. Venezia may put up a fierce fight, but with individual qualities like Rafael Leao, Christian Pulisic, and confidence after the derby win, the Rossoneri are believed to be able to bring home the win.

Estimated Lineup Of Players

Venezia:Radu; Schingtienne, Idzes, Cande; Zerbin, Perez, Nicolussi Caviglia, Busio, Ellertsson; Yeboah; Fila.

AC Milan:Maignan; Tomori, Thiaw, Pavlovic; Jimenez, Fofana, Reijnders, Hernandez; Pulisic, Jovic, Leao.

Score prediction: Venezia 0-2 AC Milan.