Chelsea VS AC Milan Match Prediction

Remarkably, given how well that these two clubs have fared in European competition over the years, they have only met five times in their respective histories; and a trilogy of those meetings came way back in 1966!

Three of the five ended in a draw, and there has been one victory apiece for the two teams. But with last Chelsea-Milan fixture taking place back in 1999, we are happy to overlook the head-to-head stats for now.

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Chelsea vs AC Milan: Prediction

Football punters are always looking for omens or ‘angles in’ when placing their bets, and the best of those appears to be this: on July 27, Chelsea beat Liverpool 1-0. On July 30, Liverpool beat Milan 2-0.

By that twisted logic then we would expect Chelsea to win here, and while Antonio Conte has been experimenting with his side in terms of personnel and strategy they have been impressive enough in their two ICC encounters to date to suggest they can get the job done.

There is a fragility to this Milan side – they have conceded five goals in their last two games – that is surprising given the reputation Italian sides have for resolute defending. If Conte names a strong, attacking line-up here his forward players may have some fun.

Chelsea vs AC Milan Betting Tips

If punters move fast, they can still secure Evens on Chelsea to win this match, and right now that looks likely to be the best investment to be made in this match.

Antonio Conte’s men are just starting to crank through the gears, and Milan’s defensive vulnerability will be of huge concern to them. With such a quick turnaround of matches in this competition, they will have had little time to work on their shape.

The ICC has been a goal-laden tournament to date, so let’s back the Blues to score over 1.5 goals at 17/20.

New Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has used the International Champions Cup as a kind of testing bed for the young talents on the fringes of his side. Expect a similar theme here, although the Italian is just starting to introduce a number of more experienced pros into the fray.

Chelsea likely XI

Asmir Begovic (GK); Cesar Azpilicueta, Baba Rahman, Gary Cahill, Nathaniel Chalobah (DEF); Oscar, Nemanja Matic (MID); Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Eden Hazard, Pedro, Bernard Traore (ATT).

 

It has been a tournament of contrasts for Milan so far; an enjoyable 3-3 draw with Bayern culminated in a 5-3 penalty shootout victory, although the famous red & blacks will have been disappointed with the nature of their 0-2 defeat to Liverpool last time out.

AC Milan likely XI:

Gianluigi Donnarumma (GK); Alessio Romagnoli, Jherson Amu, Gabriel Paletta (DEF); Mattia De Sciglio, Ignazio Abate, Luca Antonelli, Andrea Bertolacci, Riccardo Montolivo (MID); M’baye Niang, Luiz Adriano (ATT).

The nature of this International Champions Cup tournament to date has been one of ups and downs: only two of the ten teams have won all of their matches (and Barcelona have only played once!). As such, the unpredictable nature of things makes an \'expert verdict\' difficult to make with any confidence. But Chelsea have been the more reliable of the two sides, and Antonio Conte will be looking to build some momentum in what is, technically at least, his first month in charge of on-field operations. Expect the Blues to be motivated to win here then.

It is AC Milan\'s defensive woes that could be definitive in this one - if you are conceding at a rate of 2.5 per game on average, as they have done to date - then you are always going to struggle to win a football match. Chelsea have been playing their best available back four so far in the competition, and if they can keep a clean sheet here then surely the Blues will romp to victory.