Mark your calendars as Sunday 22 August two of the most successful clubs of all time in Italian football AC Milan and Juventus will go head to head in the San Siro for the coveted Luigi Berlusconi trophy.
This annual friendly match is played in memory of Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi’s. Milan have won the trophy 11 times to Juve’s 8 and Sunday’s encounter will definitely be another battle for supremacy.
Milan’s serial goal scorer Filippo Inzaghi is the tournaments all time top goal scorer with 7 goals with Juventus legend Alessandro Del Piero follows close behind with 4 goals. If history is anything to go by, then Milan should make room in their trophy cabinet because they have won the last 5 editions.
So what does Sunday’s tie have to offer? For starters, both Milan and Juventus will use this match as a test to gauge how prepared they are to give Inter a challenge for the scudetto.
Juventus have just completed the signing of Milo Krasic from CSKA Moscow and after overcoming Shamrock rovers 2-1 on Thursday, they are hot favourites to beat the Rossoneri on Sunday.
Milan on the other hand largely have a similar squad that won the trophy last year with Kevin Prince Boateng and Sokratis Papastothopoulos being the most notable acquisitions.
Milan have not been involved in any serious or competitive fixtures since their Emirates Cup tour earlier this month and that should be reason for concern for Allegri.
This match might only be a friendly but its results may have deep implications especially for both teams. Milan star Ronaldinho is not expected to feature in this game so is Pirlo who is still recovering from an ankle injury. Official team news is not out but Pato should start.
Juventus on the other hand have the capacity to challenge Milan this time around. With a vast and flexible squad tha includes Pepe, Amauri, Del Piero and Krasic, the Bianconeri are worthy contenders.
My prediction for this match putting all factors into consideration is, a 1-1 draw with Milan winning on penalties.
Photo credit: from Kev Gilmour
