AC Milan's Challenge from Sassuolo's Young Defense

MILAN, SATURDAY — AC Milan's position at the top of the standings will be tested as they face the young defensive quartet of Sassuolo in the 15th match of the Italian League, on Sunday (14/12/2025) at 18:30 WIB, at the San Siro Stadium. If careless, I Rossoneri risk losing full points and being dethroned from their throne.

A total of 14 matches have passed in the 2025-2026 edition of the Italian League. AC Milan has consistently maintained competition at the top alongside Napoli, the defending champion, and Inter Milan, their city rival. Milan is the team that has suffered the fewest defeats. They have only ended one match without scoring points.

Sassuolo is currently the best-performing promoted team. They are in eighth place and are only four points away from the European club zone in sixth position.

Milan and Sassuolo are separated by 11 points in the current standings ahead of their duel at San Siro. Despite the significant disparity in performance quality this season, Milan cannot underestimate Sassuolo, who are coached by one of the heroes of the Italian national team in the 2006 World Cup, Fabio Grosso.

Sassuolo's defense, which is the mainstay of their game, has been impressive. They have an expected goals against ratio of 19.7, while they have only conceded 17 goals.

Goalkeeper Arijanet Muric is a crucial figure for Sassuolo's defense. He averages 3.6 saves per match. This figure is only surpassed by Cremonese's goalkeeper and the Indonesian national team player, Emil Audero (3.9 saves per match), and Lazio's goalkeeper, Ivan Provedel (3.8 saves per match).

In addition to Muric, Sassuolo has four defenders who have appeared together 11 times since the kickoff. They are the central defensive duo, Tarik Muharemovic and Jay Idzes, as well as the wing-back duo, Josh Doig on the left and Sebastian Walukiewicz on the right.

On average, the age of the Sassuolo defensive quartet is the youngest in Serie A this season. The oldest among them is 25 years old, attributed to Idzes and Walukiewicz. Doig is 23 years old, while Muharemovic is only 22 years old.

At a young age, the four defenders have proven their ability to compete in the Italian League, which is known for its brilliant defensive play. In several statistical records, Sassuolo has shown impressive performance.

They are among the top ten in several defensive statistics, such as tackles per game (23.9) and interceptions per match (7.6). This performance has helped Sassuolo maintain a record of four matches without conceding a goal.

However, on the other hand, mistakes are still frequently made by the defenders of Sassuolo. They have committed fouls resulting in penalties for the opposing team three times. Only Udinese has recorded more penalties against them, with a total of five.

"We have four defenders who are capable of executing the defensive game plan. In addition, they also assist the team in initiating attacks," said Grosso as reported by the Italian news agency, ANSA, on Saturday (13/12/2025).

Grosso acknowledged that the match against Milan will be one of the toughest matches for his team in the Italian League this season. Nevertheless, he is optimistic that Sassuolo will put up a fierce fight with the aim of bringing home points from San Siro.

"We know we're going to face a tough challenge. However, we have a card we can use to dampen and surprise Milan," said Grosso.

The potential for Sassuolo to deliver a surprise is not impossible. In the last five encounters at San Siro in the Italian League, Sassuolo has secured three victories, one draw, and has only suffered one defeat against the home team.

Milan welcomes Sassuolo with their best unbeaten streak since the 2020-2021 season. AC Milan has gone through 13 matches without losing any points. They have not been defeated since losing 1-2 to Cremonese in the opening game of this season.

Rafael Leao and his teammates have also demonstrated their winning mentality thanks to positive results against major teams, such as Napoli (2-1), AS Roma (1-0), Inter Milan (1-0), and Lazio (1-0).

Amidst that remarkable performance, Milan Coach Massimiliano Allegri reminded that the victories achieved by his team were not obtained easily. Each collection of three points, he continued, was based on hard work and good collective performance from all players.

"We need a win because it takes us further up the table. We must continue our performance as a team and take to the pitch with respect for our opponents," said Allegri, who refused to underestimate Sassuolo, as reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport.

AC Milan may not be able to field Leao, who suffered an injury during the match against Torino last weekend. This situation opens up an opportunity for Christian Pulisic to start from the kickoff.

Pulisic, the forward from the United States, is at the top of the goal-scoring chart for the Italian League 2025-2026. He has scored seven goals in nine appearances.