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The international break is over and AC Milan are back in action this weekend, hoping to clinch three points against Bologna at San Siro.
After the fiasco in the opener, Milan managed to get things back on track with a 2-0 win against Lecce last time out. Then came the international break, as well as the final days of the mercato, so some things have changed in a short period of time.
During his pre-match press conference, Max Allegri made it clear that Bologna can no longer be seen as underdogs. He also stated that he’s very happy with how the team has worked lately, while Adrien Rabiot could be an important addition.
Game date: Sunday, September 13
Kick-off time: 20:45 (CEST)
Venue: San Siro
Referee: Matteo Marcenaro (VAR: Fabbri)
Team news
Starting with the injury list, you could definitely say that it looks good numerically with two injuries. However, with Milan having a thinner squad this season, that can make a big difference. Especially when the names are Ardon Jashari and Rafael Leao.
The Portuguese winger was initially expected to be back for this one but as explained by Allegri, the muscle he injured is a complicated one. As such, he shouldn’t make it back in time for Udinese either, but rather the big clash against Napoli.
In any case, Allegri has quite a good squad at his disposal. There are many question marks due to the international break, though, with some players travelling long distances and arriving late. Not to mention that the late mercato signings could now be given a chance too.
The latest reports suggest that Rabiot will indeed play from start immediately, while Allegri stated that Christopher Nkunku has about 30 minutes in his legs. Koni De Winter, another new signing, has also been named as a potential replacement for Strahinja Pavlovic in defence.
As for the certainties, Mike Maignan, Fikayo Tomori and Matteo Gabbia should retain their spots at the back. In midfield, Luka Modric will definitely start and the same can be said for Alexis Saelemaekers and Pervis Estupinan on the flanks.
Santiago Gimenez is also nailed on to play up front, but whether it will be alongside Ruben Loftus-Cheek or Christian Pulisic is a different question. If the latter, then RLC could potentially start instead of Youssouf Fofana in midfield, with Samuele Ricci still expected to be benched either way.
Predicted Milan XI (3-5-2): Maignan; Tomori, Gabbia, Pavlovic; Saelemaekers, Loftus-Cheek, Modric, Rabiot, Estupinan; Pulisic, Gimenez.
The opponents
Most of us will know a lot about Bologna already, considering they beat Milan in the Coppa Italia final last season (the less said about that, the better!). Just to give a little bit of a recap, though, they managed to retain Vincenzo Italiana as their head coach over the summer.
This suggests that a long-term project is in place for the manager and the Rossoblu, which is certainly commendable. On the other hand, some big sales were made in the shape of Dan Ndoye to Nottingham Forest and Sam Beukema to Napoli.
The question is whether they have done a good enough job with the replacements, bringing in Martin Vitik and Torbjørn Heggem for the defence, as well as Jonathan Rowe for the left wing. All things considered, it doesn’t feel like the team’s quality has dropped massively in those positions.
Taking a look at the results so far, Bologna have one win and one defeat just like Milan. They lost the first game 1-0 to Roma and won the second against Como with the same scoreline. There haven’t been many goals so far, in other words, but it’s too early to say if this will be a pattern.
Riccardo Orsolini got off the mark in the win, finding the back of the net with a deflected effort. For the Rossoblu, it’s super important that he has a good start to the season, given just how good he can be (and we saw that in the games against Milan last season).
As for the starting XI, it’s certainly a strong one. Bernardeschi will certainly be very interesting to see back in Serie A after his stint in Toronto. It should be noted that Ciro Immobile (another new signing) and Tommaso Pobega, the former Milan man, will miss the game due to injury.
Predicted Bologna XI (4-2-3-1): Skorupski; Zortea, Vitik, Heggem, Lykogiannis; Ferguson, Freuler; Orsolini, Bernardeschi, Cambiaghi; Castro.
Head to head
Milan and Bologna have been up against each other 189 times, with the Rossoneri prevailing in 88 of these, while the Rossoblu have 54 wins to their name. 44 games have thus ended in draws, making it a fairly even fixture even if there is a favourite.
The last encounter between the two, as said, took place in the Coppa Italia and it’s one that Bologna won by the odd goal. Dan Ndoye found the back of the net at the start of the second half and Milan couldn’t find a way back after that.
In the league clash, however, Milan did manage to find a way back after also conceding the first goal of the game. Orsolini was the goalscorer for the away side, but then Gimenez (a brace) and Pulisic turned the game around.
Key stats and facts
➤ There have been 87 official head-to-head meetings between the sides at San Siro: 51
Rossoneri wins, 22 draws and 14 victories for the Emilian side.
➤ There have been eight encounters between Massimiliano Allegri and Vincenzo Italiano’s
teams, with six wins for the Rossoneri boss, one for the Bologna coach and one draw. Five of Allegri’s six victories finished 1–0.
➤ Milan’s tenth Scudetto, won on the 6th of May 1979, was mathematically clinched at San Siro
after a 0–0 draw with the Rossoblù.
➤ Santiago Giménez’s only Serie A brace came against Bologna on the 9th of May, in Milan 3–1
Bologna.
➤ Christian Pulisic is the only player in Milan’s current squad to reach double figures in the
2025 calendar year (11). Leão is second on seven, with Giménez and Reijnders joint-third on
six apiece.
➤ In last matchday, away to Lecce, Ruben Loftus-Cheek scored his 11th goal for Milan. He had
not found the net in Rossoneri colours since the 30th of March 2024 against Fiorentina.
➤ Adrien Rabiot ranks 21st among the players most used by Massimiliano Allegri, with 126
appearances. Among active players in Serie A 2025/26 coached by the Livorno-born
manager, Rabiot sits sixth: leading the list are Cuadrado (234 apps), followed by Dybala (228),
Morata (142), Locatelli (137) and Rugani (135).
➤ Bologna have not won at San Siro against Milan since the 2015/16 season: 0–1, with
Emanuele Giaccherini scoring the decisive goal in the 82′. Since then the teams have played
nine matches in Milan, yielding seven Rossoneri wins and two draws.
➤ Riccardo Orsolini sits 15th on Bologna’s all-time scoring chart with 74 goals. He is two shy
of Marino Perani in 14th and three off Claudio Bellucci in 13th.
Ones to watch
For Milan, considering he scored during international duty too, an eye must be kept on Gimenez. This is a big game for him as he needs to prove himself in Allegri’s system. The manager has praised him, offering a confidence boost, and now the Mexican needs to respond.
In midfield, Modric will be looking to run the show once again and Milan will need him to, especially since Bologna like to press hard. The Croatian knows how to play under pressure, but his teammates will need to show themselves so he can pick them out.
The last encounter at San Siro highlighted just how lethal Orsolini can be when given the time and space. He only needs that one chance, more or less, to find the back of the net and he will be looking to do it again tomorrow.
Finally, Ferguson is a proper warrior in midfield and his box-to-box abilities will be crucial for the Rossoblu. Milan will need to respond with just as much physicality, while also keeping track of his runs up and down the field.
Prediction
With similar starts to the season, and both with new signings that still need to adapt, we could be looking at a close affair underneath the San Siro floodlights. Curva Sud will be quiet again and the Bologna fans have boycotted the game, so the atmosphere could also be a bit strange.
Either way, I have a feeling that Milan will be able to build on the Lecce win with another one this time out.
AC Milan 2-1 Bologna
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