AC Milan vs Atalanta prediction: ITALY: Serie A betting tips on match 2024-02-24 19:45.
AC Milan missed out on the chance to go second in Serie A by losing 4-2 to Monza last weekend, after which manager Stefano Pioli lamented his side for making “too many mistakes”. Now nine points adrift of leaders and fierce rivals Inter Milan, the third-placed side did at least qualify for the UEFA Europa League round of 16 on Thursday but only after suffering a scare against Rennes (L 3-2, W 5-3 on aggregate).
It was far from a vintage performance and Pioli seems to be on borrowed time with Milan’s board widely expected to look elsewhere in the summer unless he can conjure up European success. To his credit, he’s getting the Rossoneri producing results at San Siro, as they haven’t lost a home league fixture since Udinese beat them in November (W6, D1), keeping four clean sheets during that sequence.
Trailing Milan by seven points with a game in hand, a win here for Atalanta would heap more pressure on Pioli as the visitors themselves target a top-four finish on the back of five straight league wins. As they scored an average of 3.4 goals per game during that run, Gian Piero Gasperini’s side have hit hot scoring form and now bid to win six top-flight fixtures in a row for the first time since December 2021.
Their current winning run across all competitions already stands at six, beginning when they beat Milan here 2-1 in the Coppa Italia in January, so La Dea won’t fear another trip to San Siro, where they’ve only lost two of the last ten competitive H2Hs (W4, D4)!
Players to watch: Rafael Leão has completed Milan’s scoring between the 50th and 60th minute in two of their last three fixtures, but after two of their on-loan players starred against them for Monza, Milan will be watchful of another of their own in Charles De Ketelaere, who’s scored four goals across his last five league appearances for Atalanta and assisted in December’s reverse fixture (W 3-2).
Hot streak: Atalanta haven’t trailed at the break in any of their last eight league games (HT: W5, D3).