Friendly preview: Perth Glory vs. AC Milan – Team news, opposition insight and how to watch

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Perth Glory and AC Milan will square up on Thursday for the final game of the Rossoneri’s Asia-Australia pre-season tour.

After one defeat and one win, against Arsenal and Liverpool respectively, Max Allegri and his men will be looking to make it two consecutive wins tomorrow. Perth Glory are hosting Milan at HBF Park and although there is a clear favourite, it will be a good test.

Milan arrived in Perth on Saturday and have since been training in the slightly chillier conditions, coming from the heat in Singapore and Hong Kong. However, with 15 degrees Celsius expected to be the coldest temperature during the game, it’s certainly not bad.

Team news

By virtue of the fact that Milan have had more time to work on the training ground, some players have also recovered from sub-optimal conditions. Mike Maignan and Youssouf Fofana returned for the Liverpool game, while Alex Jimenez is set to be back fully for this one.

Furthermore, the new signing Pervis Estupinan is starting to get the hang of Milan’s training methods and Allegri’s style of play, which obviously helps. Having said that, the Rossoneri are still without a striker, especially as Lorenzo Colombo left the camp at the weekend to join Genoa.

According to the latest reports from MilanNews, we should expect to see quite a few changes to the starting XI, as Allegri is planning to rotate. The players who haven’t played loads so far during the pre-season will get a chance, including the aforementioned Jimenez and Estupinan.

The defence could be the only untouched department, though, as Allegri clearly wants to create a solid foundation before the season starts. Not even Matteo Gabbia has been able to influence that, only coming off the bench so far.

In addition to the wing-backs, the likes of Warren Bondo, Samuel Chukwueze and Noah Okafor should get the chance. Rafael Leao and Christian Pulisic started up front against Arsenal and Liverpool, but now it’s time for a new pairing.

Predicted Milan XI (3-5-1-1): Maignan; Tomori, Thiaw, Pavlovic; Jimenez, Bondo, Ricci, Fofana, Estupinan; Chukwueze; Okafor.

Opposition news

In the 2024-25 season of the A-League, Perth Glory finished dead last with just 17 points after 26 games played. Furthermore, as recently as a few days ago, they were knocked out in the Round of 32 of the Australia Cup.

Having said all of this, it’s clear that Milan didn’t choose to face Perth Glory because it would be a great test in terms of quality. Instead, it’s all part of the good relationship that the Rossoneri have with the local community, hoping to play a Serie A game in the city next year.

Perth Glory’s head coach, David Zdrilic, spoke about the game to the club’s official website…

“To play against AC Milan or any top team is always a special occasion and we’re going to treat it like that. Having seen the games they played against Liverpool and Arsenal leading into this, they have a fantastic squad,” he said.

When asked about the potential starting eleven for the game, Zdrilic made it clear that they won’t risk any of their players just because it’s a special occasion. He also hinted that there could be changes compared to the cup game.

“I think you’ll see some players who weren’t in the Cup game get some minutes. It’s a great occasion, but we want to make sure that everybody’s fit to play however many minutes they’re going to play,” he concluded.

Perth Glory’s last XI (4-4-2): Sail; Risdon, Majekodunmi, Wootton, Sutton; Ostler, Gomulka, Timmins, Anasmo; Sulemani, Blair.