All eyes turn to one of the biggest derbies in world football this weekend, as Milan and Inter battle it out at the San Siro.
The two arch-rivals went toe-to-toe in the hunt for the Serie A title last season, with Milan emerging victorious on the final day to clinch the league crown for the first time since 2011.
Stefano Pioli's side have begun their title defence with an unbeaten start to the campaign, securing two wins and two draws, while Inter have won three of four, losing to Lazio last Friday.
Still early in the season, a single point separates the two and bragging rights are on the cards on Saturday, though neither side has a particularly good record against one another in recent years.
Milan seek to end poor derby return
A 2-1 victory over Inter in February, where Olivier Giroud netted a brace, puts Milan in hunt of consecutive league wins against Inter for the first time since 2011 – which were the first two league derbies played under Massimiliano Allegri.
While they were victorious in that particular clash, the two Coppa Italia semi-final ties in March and April saw Milan unable to score in either tie, meaning they could go three consecutive derbies without scoring for the first time since 1980.
Milan's last win as the designated host at San Siro against Inter came in Serie A back in January 2016, with Inter winning three and drawing three against the Rossoneri since then.
Inzaghi's unwanted record
Simone Inzaghi has only won one point in his first two derbies in Serie A since joining the Nerazzurri and is seeking a win to prevent an unwanted record, as failure to do so would see him become the first Inter coach not to win any of his first three matches against Milan in the top-flight since Osvaldo Bagnoli in 1993 (D2 L1).
In order to secure victory, Inter could turn to Joaquin Correa who has scored four goals in Serie A against Milan, more than any other side. The Argentine has also scored four goals in his last five appearances in the competition, having gone goalless in his previous 18.
Either way, there should be goals and a victor as Inter are the only team, excluding relegated and promoted sides, not to draw a Serie A match since last April.
During that sequence, Inter have 11 wins, at least three more than any other team, and two losses – one of which was the 3-1 defeat to Lazio last Friday.
Leao vs Lautaro
Having fended off transfer interest from Chelsea, Rafael Leao is set to make his 100th Serie A appearance in Saturday's game and the Brazilian's record sees him stand as one of the finest young players in the division.
Among players born since 1999, Leao has provided 16 Serie A assists, more than anyone else, and has scored 24 goals – putting him behind only Juventus' Dusan Vlahovic (55) and Inter's Andrea Pinamonti (25), who is on loan at Sassuolo.
With Romelu Lukaku absent through injury, Inter will turn to Lautaro Martinez to find the difference and the Argentine enters the tie in a fine vein of form.
Martinez has been involved in a goal in each of his first four appearances this season (three goals, one assist), only Zlatan Ibrahimovic (2007-08) and Nicolo Barella (2021-22) have had a hand in a goal in their first Serie A appearances in a second for Inter since 2004-05, when Opta started collecting assist data.
Pioli's perfect return
Though Milan's recent record against Inter does not make for pretty reading, their overall record heading into Saturday's derby is encouraging as they have won five consecutive home matches in Serie A.
A sixth in a row with victory against Inter would see Milan hit that tally for the first time since August 2014, under Clarence Seedorf and Filippo Inzaghi.
Milan's defence is also looking strong, having kept a clean sheet in their last two Serie A matches. A third this weekend would see Milan secure three clean sheets in the first five top-flight seasonal games in three campaigns in a row for the third time in their history (after 1952-23, 1953-54, 1954-55 and 1978-79, 1979-1980 and 1981-1982).
Disheartening and gut-wrenching: Price condemns killing of former Boys' Town player Rafiek Thomas
President of Boys' Town Football Club Andrew Price says he is struggling to come to grip with the brutal slaying of former player Rafiek “Fari” Thomas, who was gunned down at his home in Denham Town on Tuesday.
It is reported that about 4:40am, unknown assailants gained access to Thomas’ residence, in the troubled West Kingston community, and shot him several times in his bed. Another man was also injured during the home invasion.
Thomas, 40, was well-known for his goal scoring exploits in local football, especially during his time at Boys’ Town and Tivoli Gardens. He also represented Harbour View, Waterhouse, and Humble Lion throughout his career, before returning to the Boys’ Town. He scored the match-winning goal for the Collie Smith Drive-based club when they copped the Kingston and St Andrew Football Association (KSAFA) Wray and Nephew Championship last season.
They retained the title with a penalty shoot-out win over Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) on Sunday, but their celebrations were cut short by the tragic news, which has plunged the football fraternity into mourning.
A disheartened club president Andrew Price expressed condolence to Thomas’s family and friends, as he remembered the player as passionate, inspirational and humble.
“It is so sad when you hear another life snuffed out through crime and violence in inner city communities. Rafiek Thomas was an inspirational player, very skillful, and a prolific goal scorer. I enjoyed coaching him. He was a gem to coach, always unassuming, humble individual, so I'm taking this very, badly to awake to this type of news after the club's triumphant Sunday night it is just really disheartening and gut-wrenching,” Price said.
“Such a talented individual; he was always willing to assist, to impress, to guide the youngsters and even at his age, he was still a prolific goal scorer. One of the last goals he scored was a year ago in the finals of the Championship against Constant Spring. So we will remember Rafiek for how passionate he was both on and off the field. It's sad to hear that his life has ended in this tragic manner and it reinforces the need to engage football as a socializing effect in communities,” he added.
Los Angeles FC v Minnesota United: Long aiming to build on LAFC's growing momentum
Defender Aaron Long has praised Los Angeles FC's recent defensive strength as they prepare to welcome Minnesota United to BMO Stadium on Wednesday.
LAFC have won their last four in all competitions without conceding a goal, with Saturday's 1-0 victory over Atlanta United their 100th MLS regular-season win.
They currently sit fourth in the Western Conference with 24 points and can leapfrog opponents Minnesota United if they continue their winning streak.
"We touched on it a little bit earlier in the year when I was asked about giving up a lot of goals in a lot of weird ways," said Long.
"We pride ourselves on being a good defensive team with a good structure and getting 11 guys behind the ball and working hard.
"More than anything, I think we have strikers, forwards and midfielders who can score a lot of goals. If we can hold zeros, we can win a lot of games. We held four zeros in a row, four wins, so let's try and keep the ball rolling."
When asked about reaching the milestone of their 100th win last Saturday, Long added: "To be the fastest to 100 or tied as the fastest to 100, is a huge, monumental step. I think it's something that the club should be proud of."
Meanwhile, Minnesota are second in the table, just four points behind leaders Real Salt Lake City after a 3-3 draw with Colorado Rapids last weekend.
They have not lost any of their last seven matches, and forward, Tani Oluwaseyi is looking forward to facing off against a tough opponent.
He said: "You always want to face the great teams and LAFC is a marquee team with a lot of really good players, really big players. Hopefully, we can put a great game plan together to go into that game."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
LAFC – Mateusz Bogusz
Bogusz scored LAFC's lone goal in their win in Atlanta on Saturday. Only four players have scored Los Angeles FC's 15 goals since the beginning of April (excluding own goals): Denis Bouanga (six), Mateusz Bogusz (four), Cristian Olivera (three) and Timothy Tillman (two).
Minnesota – Tani Oluwaseyi
Oluwaseyi scored the second of Minnesota’s three goals on Saturday at Colorado, scoring for the third-straight MLS road game. Oluwaseyi is the second Minnesota player to score in three straight regular-season away matches after Franco Fragapane did so in June-July 2022.
MATCH PREDICTION: LOS ANGELES FC WIN
LAFC have won five straight matches in all competitions, keeping clean sheets in the last four. This equals their second-longest all-competition winning streak (seven straight in 2022) while it's the second time LAFC have kept clean sheets in four straight matches (April 2023).
Meanwhile, Minnesota are unbeaten in six straight matches following a 3-3 draw at Colorado on Saturday (W4 D2). The Loons have scored multiple goals in all six games during that run.
Indeed, Minnesota ended a seven-match winless run against LAFC with a 2-0 home victory on March 16. Each team has won three times against the other with five of the 11 meetings ending in draws.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
LAFC – 51.5%
Draw – 25.3%
Minnesota – 23.2%
Fiorentina can use 'bitterness' from 2023 Europa Conference League final defeat, says Italiano
Vincenzo Italiano has urged Fiorentina to use their "bitterness" from last year's defeat in the Europa Conference League final against Olympiacos on Wednesday.
Fiorentina lost the 2023 Europa Conference League final in Prague to West Ham 2-1, conceding in the 90th minute to miss out on the chance to lift the trophy.
The Viola have not lost a game in the competition on the way to the final, holding off Club Brugge 4-3 on aggregate to reach the final for the second consecutive year.
Despite suffering disappointment last year, Italiano is hopeful his team can use that as a lesson to lead them to the trophy this time around.
"The only thing that's different is that we've already experienced certain things," Italiano told a press conference before Wednesday's final.
"We have a bit of experience; we carry that with us and tomorrow we have to show it. We can't make any mistakes; we must stay alert and focused.
"Last year we didn't have a good ending. We'll bring that bitterness to make it end differently."
Meanwhile, Olympiacos are aiming to make history by becoming the first Greek side to win a European trophy.
Jose Luis Mendilibar, who won the Europa League with Sevilla last season, took over Olympiacos in February and is leading the team out for the final in their home city of Athens.
In a press conference on Tuesday, Mendilibar said he would not be making any changes, approaching this game as they have the rest.
"We have to stay calm and relaxed and do what got us to the final. To change anything would be a mistake.
"We have to treat this game like any other because that's how we managed to get to the final.
"Along the way, we've crossed the whole of Europe, playing against a lot of opponents.
"At times we were favourites, and then underdogs again. There are so many different moments and I think we could call it a marathon, and now we've reached the end."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
