Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini is urging his team-mates to carry the momentum from a memorable victory over Chelsea into tonight’s trip to the San Siro.
The Bianconeri are on the verge of clinching a place in the last 16 of the Champions League after cruising to a 3-0 win over European champions Chelsea last week.
The game took a lot out of Juve vice captain Chiellini, though, and the 28-year-old is facing a race against time to be fit to face struggling Milan.
He said: “The match against Chelsea was the most important game of the season so far. We knew we could not afford to go wrong and we played a great game.
“The downside of a win like that is that you can only enjoy it for one night, because then you have to start thinking about the next game, especially when that game is against Milan.
“We have to use the experience of the Chelsea game in the right way because it would be a serious mistake to relax now.
“That’s something you can never afford to do against Milan. It will be an extremely intense game, between two highly motivated sides that want to win.
“I’m struggling a bit but it’s only fatigue. Without taking too many risks, I will do everything I can to be there.”
The Italy international has identified the Azzurri’s latest star, Stephan El Shaarawy, as the man he will be marking should he play today.
El Shaarawy is currently leading the Serie A leading scorers’s table with 10 goals, with Chiellini noting: “He is the revelation of the season.
“We could all see his potential last year, though. Now he is scoring a lot of goals and becoming a key player for Milan.
“In addition to his technical quality he has the right attitude and he wants to show what he can do.”
Juventus deposed the Rossoneri as Serie A champions in 2011, and Milan’s star has certainly fallen a long way since they secured 3-0 wins both at home and away in the 2009-10 season.
Fast forward two years and Juve top the table with 32 points, 17 more than Milan, who are languishing in lower half of the standings.
Brazilian striker Alexandre Pato, who has revealed his dissatisfaction over his current part-time role at the San Siro, will sit out today’s clash with a muscle problem.
Serie A
Played yesterday
Palermo 3
Miccoli 10; Ilicic 49, 60;
Catania 1
Lodi 70;
HT: 1-0. Att: 17,00.
| P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | |
| Juventus | 13 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 29 | 9 | 32 |
| Inter | 13 | 9 | 1 | 3 | 26 | 15 | 28 |
| Fiorentina | 13 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 23 | 10 | 27 |
| Napoli | 13 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 22 | 11 | 27 |
| Lazio | 13 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 19 | 17 | 23 |
| Roma | 13 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 30 | 23 | 20 |
| Catania | 14 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 18 | 20 | 19 |
| Atalanta (-2) | 13 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 19 | 18 |
| Parma | 13 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 16 | 18 | 17 |
| Udinese | 13 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 18 | 20 | 16 |
| Cagliari | 13 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 13 | 19 | 16 |
| Milan | 13 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 20 | 18 | 15 |
| Torino (-1) | 13 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 13 | 12 | 14 |
| Palermo | 14 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 14 | 21 | 14 |
| Sampdoria (-1) | 13 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 16 | 19 | 13 |
| Bologna | 13 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 15 | 18 | 11 |
| Chievo | 13 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 13 | 25 | 11 |
| Pescara | 13 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 9 | 24 | 11 |
| Siena (-6) | 13 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 13 | 14 | 10 |
| Genoa | 13 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 13 | 22 | 9 |
Playing today – 15.00
Atalanta vs Genoa
Chievo vs Siena
Milan vs Juventus - 20.45
Pescara vs Roma
Sampdoria vs Bologna
Torino vs Fiorentina
Tomorrow
Cagliari vs Napoli - 19.00
Parma vs Inter - 21.00
Tuesday
Lazio vs Udinese - 20.45
Next fixtures
Friday: 20.45 Catania vs Milan.
Saturday: 20.45 Juventus vs Torino.
Sunday: 12.30 Napoli vs Pescara. 15.00 Bologna vs Atalanta; Genoa vs Chievo; Inter vs Palermo; Lazio vs Parma; Siena vs Roma; Udinese vs Cagliari. 20.45 Fiorentina vs Sampdoria.
Serie B
Ascoli vs Vicenza - 0-0
Cesena vs Spezia - 1-1
Cittadella vs Verona - 2-1 (suspended on 81 mins due to fog)
Crotone vs Padova - 0-1
Grosseto vs Brescia - 2-2
Juve Stabia vs Empoli - 1-2
Sassuolo vs Reggina - 3-1
Ternana vs Lanciano - 2-2
Varese vs Pro Vercelli - 2-0
Playing today
Bari vs Modena - 12.30
Standings: Sassuolo 38; Livorno 35; Verona 32; Padova (-2) 25; Juve Stabia 24; Brescia, Varese (-1) 23; Modena (-2) 22; Cittadella, Empoli (-1) 21; Spezia 20; Ternana 18; Crotone (-2), Vicenza, Ascoli (-1) 17; Bari (-7), Cesena 15; Reggina (-3) 14; Lanciano 13; Pro Vercelli 11; Novara (-4) 10; Grosseto (-6) 8.