Previously on As The Milan Turns ...
If Serie A Femminile were a summit, then AC Milan have scaled the highest heights, and are currently on top of Mount Everest. And they’ve climbed that mountain while being completely intoxicated on the rush of adrenaline and the blood of their enemies, thanks to the fact that they recently vanquished their crosstown rivals, by claiming their scalp in the first ever Serie A derby between the two sides. They say it’s lonely at the top, but (un)fortunately, Juventus are also there, and currently keeping them company. And with the Bianconere right on their heels, they might find life at the top of the summit a little bit too crowded for their liking.
3️⃣° Giornata #SerieAFemminile
— FIGC Calcio Femminile (@FIGCfemminile) October 13, 2019
La classifica aggiornata dopo i posticipi di oggi tra #JuventusFlorentia e #InterMilan
La news con il resoconto della giornata
➡️ https://t.co/I4p7gxnZUE#CalcioFemminile pic.twitter.com/ODUfx9axmy
Fortunately, the ladies of Milan will have a chance to remain at the very top of that table, when they take on provincial side Tavagnacco this Saturday.
I don’t profess to be an expert on Tavagnacco, as I’ve only watched them when they’ve played the other Serie A teams that actually stream their games (so in other words: not very many of them). But I do know that they recently lost 2-1 to Fiorentina, who are last year’s runners-up and the only Italian team that’s seeded in the UWCL. All things considered, that’s not a bad result, considering Fiorentina is a much stronger team.
With this in mind, this is where Milan should start to be careful. Milan is a classically Italian team in that ― while they’ll step it up against the Big Teams like Inter and Roma ― they just might falter against the so-called ‘smaller’ ones. There is, unfortunately, precedent for this, as it was around this stage of the season last year, that Milan began to drop points, most notably against Florentia, where they only managed a 1-1 draw against the humble Tuscan side. That draw, and dropping points to the likes of Chievo, cost them in the long run, as they ended up finishing the season in third place, and narrowly missed out on a spot in the Champions League.
They also managed to do this with a much more talented squad, which (as I’ve noted many times before), was completely gutted over the summer. Fortunately, this current Milan side has a few things going for it that its predecessor didn’t have: experience, a sense of cohesion; a better coach (and one who understands his players and who knows how to get the best out of them) and best of all, more attention from the club and from the Milanisti faithful, who have now found refuge in the success of the Milan women as they look to find temporary escape from the endless woes of the men. (And, best of all, Ganz apparently, has no aversion to peanut butter either.)
The previously mentioned results against Roma and Inter would again, attest to this, as would the result against Orobica, as they are, like Tavagnacco, a smaller, provincial side (and one they managed to have success against). One would hope that the Rossonere would also have the same results against the Friulian side, as well.
And even though it is Halloween season, I don’t want to frighten the Milanisti by the prospect of dropping points here. Still, this is something to be wary of, and the Rossonere should surely be aware of this as well.
Let’s just hope that Capitano Valentina isn’t too tired to lead her squad after fulfilling her promise to walk all the way home from practice after winning the derby (and having walked all nine of those kilometers too).
Winning the derby ✅
— AC Milan (@acmilan) October 17, 2019
Keeping the resolution ✅
Getting to know Captain Giacinti better ✅
Walk home from training with us! #SempreMilan #FollowTheRossonere pic.twitter.com/AuPgfT4R7S
Milan will take on Tavagnacco on Saturday, at 15:00, or 3:00 PM CET (9:00 am EST / 6:00 am PST). Assuming the game will not be blocked out by Sky(Net), you will most likely be able to watch the match on the official AC Milan app.
Probable Formation and Line-Up: (4-3-3) Korenciova, Vitale, Fusetti, Hovland, Tucceri, Čonč, Jane, Heroum, Bergamaschi, Giacinti, Andrade
Here’s to hoping the ladies can take all three points from this game, and remain on top of Mount Everest for just a little while longer.