Milan Looks To Unlock Barcelona, Today

AC Milan have hinted they could shun their Italian roots when Barcelona visit the San Siro in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, first leg today.

Speaking following Saturday’s 2-1 win over Roma, Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri said there were two ways to tackle Barcelona.

“Either you sit back and try to hit them on the counter-attack, which is difficult, or you do what we did in our home group game and have a go, but we made some mistakes,” he said.

Allegri hinted that he favoured a more positive approach in throwing some caution to the wind rather than adopting a more typical catenaccio (door-bolt) system. In either case, Allegri is more likely to turn to his forwards than his defence to try to solve the Barcelona conundrum.

The two sides met in the group stages earlier this season and although the scores were close, Barcelona totally dominated in the 2-2 draw in Spain while they also deserved their 3-2 victory in Italy. What those games showed, though, was that Barcelona do concede goals if teams adopt a more offensive strategy.

And with Robinho and Maxi Lopez training again following injuries, with the former likely to partner Zlatan Ibrahimovic up front, Milan’s attacking resources at least appear handsome – much more so than against Roma where youngster Stephan El Shaarawy was called upon.

In defence, it is a different story as influential centre-back Thiago Silva has been ruled out of both legs with a hamstring pull. It means Daniele Bonera, rather than veteran Alessandro Nesta, who is just back from injury, is likely to play alongside Frenchman Philippe Mexes in the heart of defence.

Silva’s loss cannot be understated despite the reliability of Bonera, who stepped into the breach two years ago at Old Trafford as Milan were crushed 4-0 by Manchester United.

Club captain Massimo Ambrosini knows how much Silva will be missed. “I’m sorry for Thiago Silva, it’s an important loss but we’ll keep going,” he said. “Barcelona are the best team in the world but you don’t need to be a magician to know that.

“They’ve made their mark on football history but it’s also a great stimulus to be playing them. We need everyone to make big sacrifices. There’s not just one player to stop, Barcelona have many weapons.”

Also missing for Milan is former Barcelona holding midfielder Mark van Bommel, as well as forwards Pato and Antonio Cassano.