Wednesday 28th February 2018 Kick off 1945hrs Lazio v Milan Football – Italy – Coppa Italia The second leg of this Coppa Italia tie is perfectly poised as Lazio and Milan go again having drawn the first leg 0-0 at the end of last month. Lazio are the reigning holders of the competition, of course, and will be going all out to win it for a second straight year. Milan will just be looking for some silverware after many barren years and for a club with so much success in their history, that is something that is unacceptable. It’s all to play for in the Italian capital on Wednesday night.
Lazio are enjoying an excellent season as they lie third in Serie A and have a slight advantage of reaching the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia for yet another season. It’s a tremendous job by Simone Inzaghi who was never the most fashionable of players but he is proving a really effective manager. It’s not been the case for a while that Lazio have sat above their arch rivals Roma at this stage of the season but that’s the case just now, albeit only by a point. There is no chance of them catching Napoli or Juventus at the top of the table but a top four finish would see them playing Champions League football next season which would be a serious achievement for the club. As well as that, they are attempting to win back to back domestic cups and having drawn with Milan in the San Siro, they have a slight advantage over that rival going into the second leg. Lazio will be buoyed by the fact they have a very strong home record in this competition to call upon heading into tomorrow’s game, with only one defeat in their last 22 Coppa Italia ties played at the Stadio Olimpico.
There was much excitement surrounding Milan at the start of this season as the club were under new ownership and millions were ploughed into the playing squad. Despite that expectation, it transpired to be the same old Milan of recent seasons – full of underachievement. Vincenzo Montella was subsequently sacked and replaced by a club legend in Gennaro Gattuso. Although a great player, Gattuso was seen as a surprise appointment due to his lack of experience and success in coaching. There are signs, however, that he is finding his feet very quickly as Milan have reeled off five straight wins and are unbeaten in 11 games in all competitions. They are seven points off the Champions League places but may still fancy a late charge at the top four, whilst still competing in the latter stages of the Europa League. Arguably their biggest statement of intent came on Sunday as they defeated Roma 2-0 in the same stadium they will be in tomorrow evening. A similar level of performance will be required once again if they are to defeat the other half of Roma and reach the last four of the Coppa Italia.
Lazio v Milan Betting Tip
The first leg of this tie, played nearly a month ago, has little in the way of excitement was understandably cagey considering neither team would be willing to give the other much of an advantage ahead of this match. It’s a result that both teams would also have been quite happy with for reasons explained above, as Lazio will fancy their chances of winning at home whilst Milan seem to have found a good level of form on the road and will be full of confidence after their excellent win over Roma at the weekend.
Meetings between the two this season have been split with a resounding 4-1 win for Lazio at home to Milan in September before a 2-1 home win at the San Siro in the league, shortly before the first leg of this tie. Being so familiar with each other should mean there is little chance of either team surprising the other but it may also see a similar game to the first leg where space is a luxury and little in the way of goalmouth action. As a neutral you would hope that is not the case but in terms of a betting point of view, it screams a low-scoring affair and possibly the requirement of extra time to settle the tie. In this instance I think under 2.5 goals is the way to go, a bet that would have won in five of the last eight meetings between these two.
Under 2.5 goals 97/100 @ Marathon Bet
