The textual chronicle

At 20.45 Udinese and Milan face each other at the Dacia Arena in Udine after the 4-2 for the Rossoneri on 13 August. Milan reunites with Zlatan Ibrahimović as a starter. In the last ten direct matches there have been four wins for Milan, one for Udinese and five draws. Udinese comes from a win and two draws and is 35 points, one less than Sassuolo and one more than Monza. The race for the European cups is still open because there are seven teams with very few points behind: Juventus, Torino, Bologna, Sassuolo, Udinese, Fiorentina and Monza.

"Milan is and remains a battleship, a team that makes a strength of organization and individuality - said the coach of Udinese, Andrea Sottil, on the eve of the game -. They have players who at any time can pull the play out of the cylinder, counting also those who can enter the game in progress. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one of them. Having said that, we have the determination and the desire to do our race, I'm repetitive but it's an important concept. We must not watch others play but face the challenge with courage, with the right and healthy unscrupulousness and be concentrated to the maximum, with and without possession of the ball. We also have players and an idea of football that have given us so much this year. This is why I am convinced that Udinese will play the game from start to finish."

Here Milan

Milan have just passed the knockout stages of the Champions League against Tottenham thanks to a 1-0 win in the first leg and a 0-0 draw in the second leg. In Serie A comes from a draw, 1-1 with Salernitana, a defeat, 2-1 against Fiorentina, and a victory, 2-0 with Atalanta. In the standings it has 48 points and is fourth behind Napoli, Inter and Lazio. Coach Stefano Pioli took stock of the conditions of his players on the eve of the match against Udinese: "Ibra is fine, he lives it together with his teammates. He knows very well that he was not in a position to play when it came to making the lists for the Champions League. He wants to play them all, he wants to win them all. He's fine and ready to play."

And on tonight's starters Pioli reveals: "We'll see what choices I make, Rebic or Origi can also play. Leao is training well, he is serene and determined to give the right contribution to the team. Leao remains a reference of the offensive phase. Even if he doesn't score, he opens up opposing defenses. He is very motivated and determined, he is fine. As long as I see that the team is well mentally and physically, I will put the best line-up on the field. We are not playing with an extra defender, because against some teams even with the 4-2-3-1 we did the defense to 3. Our goal in attack is to be as unpredictable as we can. We will return to defending at four when there are opponents more suitable for the four-man defense. But these are your things, it matters to play well." And on Tonali, Pioli added: "He has already rested against Salernitana, playing only a few minutes. Tonali is fine, Bennacer is better and is putting important minutes in his legs. At first he had some physical problems, then there were some of my choices."