Group D
Kick-off: 19:45 (BST)
Milan may be struggling at the momentbut the message from coach Carlo Ancelotti ahead of the visit of Shakhtar Donetsk, is one of defiance.
“I’m not going to make drastic changes,” he declared.
The European champions are ten points behind leaders Internazionale in Serie A and lost 2-1 at Celtic in their last UEFA Champions League outing to fall three points behind Group D leaders Shakhtar.
“We keep on losing our balance every time we don’t manage an early goal, and this is a big mistake,” Ancelotti said. “We must win more ball in midfield, be quicker in possession and gamble less in defence.”
“This game will be different because Shakhtar are a complete team with no weak points and will come to San Siro to play their own game,” he said.
“They have changed a lot compared to last season, adding talented players in midfield and playing very technical football with a Brazilian flavour. It will be a very balanced game because their coach, Mircea Lucescu, knows Italian football very well and will try to make our lives difficult.”
Suspended goalkeeper Dida will be replaced by Zeljko Kalac while Giuseppe Favalli should come in for the injured Marek Jankulovski at left-back with Kakha Kaladze in central defence. Ancelotti’s biggest concern, though, is last term’s tournament top scorer Kaká, who is struggling with a knee problem.
“He is a big question mark,” Ancelotti admitted. “We still have one day, let’s see if he can recover or not.” If not, Alberto Gilardino and Filippo Inzaghi should start in attack.
Shakhtar coach Mircea Lucescu has no injury or suspension worries and is hoping for an improvement from Nery Castillo and Cristiano Lucarelli, the latter returning to Italy having left Livorno in the summer.
Lucescu is warning his team-mates to expect a backlash from Milan.
“Milan cannot afford to lose two home games in a row so the atmosphere will be hot,” he said.
“They will try to score early so they can open up space – they are lethal when they have space. They know Shakhtar are a good side with good ability. We will not change our usual approach. We cannot play like Empoli did here on Sunday. We are not coming to defend. We want to receive the plaudits of the San Siro.”
