It is almost impossible to right about AC Milan now and not just wax lyrical about Rafael Leao and how he is almost certain to score. The Portuguese attacker is one of, and some will say the most, exciting players in Serie A right now.

He has been the subject of much transfer speculation over the past few months and the club are trying to get him to sign a new contract as soon as possible. That doesn’t seem to have distracted him as he scored twice at the World Cup and returned to Milan action by scoring the first goal and looking dangerous throughout against Salernitana.

Roma may have one of the best defences in the league, having conceded just 14 times, but they need to get more points on the board and at some point in the contest, there should be some space for Leao to exploit.

He has scored seven goals and got five assists in Serie A so far this season. He also scored once in the Champions League group stage, picking up another four assists. Milan tend to play very well at home and Leao is usually at the heart of it.

Expect that to be the case again against Roma whilst Leao shows Milan why they should give him the wage he wants, and also shows prospective buyers why they should make their move.

Given it’s a game between two big sides, one of whom has struggled to play much fluid attacking football this season, both teams to score could look like an odd call.

The reasoning behind it is that both teams have got some superb attackers who can make something happen in a heartbeat, and both teams will come into this game feeling that they need to win rather than settle for a point.

The season will be deemed a failure if Jose Mourinho does not take this Roma side into the Champions League and he knows it, which is why he can’t afford to just sit deep in these games against other teams that will almost certainly occupy a spot in the top four.

With players such as Tammy Abraham, Nicolo Zaniolo, Lorenzo Pellegrini and Paulo Dybala to call upon, as well as the chance of seeing new signing Ola Solbakken get some minutes on the wing, there is enough quality to suggest that Roma should find the back of the net at some stage even if they do not win the game.

As for Milan, there are plenty of players that can hurt Roma and they will start on the front foot. Leao has been mentioned, whilst Olivier Giroud, Brahim Diaz and Sandro Tonali have all been effective in attack recently.

Belgian youngster Charles De Ketelaere also looked very bright when he came on against Salernitana and was unlucky not to score.

This could also seem odd based on Tammy Abraham’s troubled season so far, but the whole way through, he has looked like a loaded spring. The ball just has not dropped right now Abraham, his effort levels have not dropped at all.

That was exhibited against Bologna when he came off the bench and cleared the ball off the line to ensure Roma kept all three points. It wasn’t a goal, but that crucial involvement will have made him feel important again and it would be a shock if he didn’t start this match against Milan.

He has only scored three Serie A goals so far this season, but he got 17 last season and he scored against Atalanta, Lazio, Juventus and Milan which shows he can find the net in the big games.
No one will be more determined to show improvement in 2023 than Abraham and Mourinho will be backing him all the way. This could be the game where he puts in a great performance and gets all of the fans back on his side.

The former Chelsea man averages 1.09 shots per game, second for Roma in the above Cheat Sheet, and will look to continue this average at the San Siro on Sunday night.

The Englishman will also be desperate to score against his old Chelsea mate, Fikayo Tomori. Those friendly rivalries can bring out another side in some players and that could be really fascinating for the contest.