AC Milan will close the 23rd round of Serie A with an away game to the Stadio Dall'Ara to face Bologna, Tuesday night, February 3. This duel brings together a team that still dreams of the champion with the host who is struggling to get out of the negative trend, as well as repeating the final meeting of the Coppa Italia last season.
The Rossoneri come into the match looking to extend an unbeaten run that is now one of the longest in Europe's top five leagues, while Bologna are still looking for their first home win of 2026.
Even though they had lost a number of points since the beginning of the year, AC Milan remained Inter Milan's closest competitor in the Scudetto hunt. Last week, they showed their steel again when facing AS Roma.
After falling behind early due to Koni De Winter's header, Milan took control of the match and eventually forced a draw. Captain and mainstay goalkeeper Mike Maignan, who has just extended his contract until 2031, was again a crucial figure under the bar.
The result saw Massimiliano Allegri's men extend their unbeaten run in Serie A to 21 games. The record began after a shock defeat to Cremonese in the opening week of the season, and is now the longest among clubs in Europe's five elite leagues.
So far this season, Milan's only defeats have come in the knockout rounds, losing to Napoli in the Supercoppa Italiana and being knocked out of the Coppa Italia by Lazio.
Despite losing to Bologna in last season's Coppa Italia final, Milan were able to get back at them in Serie A last September through Luka Modric's lone goal, which was his first goal in the competition.
Bologna Slip Up After Dream Season
Bologna is in the opposite situation. After making history by winning the Coppa Italia last season, the Rossoblu's performance has slowly deteriorated since entering the winter half.
Vincenzo Italiano's side have won just once in their last 10 Serie A games, with six defeats, and are now closer to the middle of the table than the European zone.
Last week's dramatic defeat to Genoa reflected Bologna's crisis. Having taken a two-goal lead in the first half, they collapsed after goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski was sent off, conceding three goals in the second half, including the decisive goal in injury time.
The victory over Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Europa League at least gave a little relief, as well as ensuring the top position ahead of the knockout playoff against SK Brann. However, in Serie A, Bologna have not won in the last five home games, with only one point collected.
AC Milan comes into this game in relatively ideal condition. Their absence from European competition makes the schedule lighter, and only Santiago Gimenez is confirmed to be out due to injury.
Without the Mexican striker, Allegri still has many options up front, ranging from Christopher Nkunku, Niclas Fullkrug, Christian Pulisic, to Rafael Leao. Pulisic and Leao have contributed a total of 15 league goals this season, while Fullkrug has just scored the winning goal against Lecce.
At Bologna, Italiano is expected to make a rotation after the busy January schedule. Skorupski is absent due to suspension and will be replaced by Federico Ravaglia. The mainstay defender Jhon Lucumi is also still sidelined due to a hamstring injury.
However, Bologna have plenty of options in attack. Riccardo Orsolini, the team's top scorer, scored again in the Europa League and is almost certain to start. He will support a main striker, with Santiago Castro, Thijs Dallinga, and Ciro Immobile competing for the position. Immobile himself has a record of eight Serie A goals against Milan, although his last league goal was in May 2024.
AC Milan may not always perform convincingly, but the consistency and solidity of their away form is their main strength this season. The Rossoneri are unbeaten in Serie A away games and have only conceded eight goals.
On the other hand, Bologna looks fragile at home and still hasn't found their best momentum.
Expected line-up
Bologna: Ravaglia; Zortea, Vitik, Heggem, Miranda; Freuler, Pobega; Orsolini, Odgaard, Cambiaghi; Castro
AC Milan: Maignan; Tomori, Gabbia, De Winter; Saelemaekers, Ricci, Modric, Rabiot, Bartesaghi; Pulisic, Leao
Final prediction: Bologna 1-2 AC Milan
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
