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Andrea Pirlo’s men are 10 points behind undefeated Milan, having played one game less.
Inter Milan lurks just one point behind their rivals in the city with the opportunity to get ahead against Sampdoria in the middle of the table.
“Against Juventus it is not decisive or a witness pass,” insisted Milan coach Stefano Pioli.
“Juve have won the last nine titles and they are not far behind.”
But not getting all three points would weigh heavily on Pirlo’s team, which is currently in fifth place.
It will be a clash of styles between Milan and the champions, who have relied heavily on Ronaldo this season, with the Portuguese scoring 14 of his 29 goals, including six doubles.
Without the 35-year-old, Juventus have fought for victory, being held back three times in his absence by Crotone, Hellas Verona and Benevento.
Juve will also not have the injured Alvaro Morata, their second-best scorer after Ronaldo, and defender Alex Sandro will also be out after testing positive for coronavirus.
Milan have remained strong despite not having injured top scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic since late November, winning five and drawing two in his absence.
The 39-year-old Swede scored 10 goals in six games before suffering from a muscle problem.
Including Ibrahimovic, 13 different players have scored for Milan since the start of the season, compared to just eight for Juventus.
Pirlo revealed that the club “was a bit short” between forwards and was looking to bring in an additional forward during the transfer window.
The young Milan team has been taken advantage of by Ibrahimovic’s return to Lombardy a year ago, promising to deliver the ‘Scudetto’ that he last won with him in 2011.
Milan has been undefeated in the league since March and won 2-0 in Benevento on Sunday despite playing with one man less for an hour.
“It is too early, in April we will see where we are in the standings and we will understand where we can go,” continued Pioli.
“In my opinion, Juventus, Inter and Napoli are the strongest teams in Serie A, we just have to continue on our way.”
Inter goalscorer goes to Claudio Ranieri’s Sampdoria in search of a ninth consecutive victory in the league.
But top scorer Romelu Lukaku remains unsure after sustaining a thigh injury in his 6-2 win over Crotone on Sunday.
Six points behind Inter, Roma, who are in third place, travel to the bottom of Crotone, with Napoli two points behind the capital before their match against the humble Spezia.
Sassuolo are looking to get back on the winning track against Genoa, who are in 19th place, and Atalanta host Parma, who are struggling to close the three-point gap between them and the Champions League spots.
Lazio, ninth, host Fiorentina, 14th, desperate to keep in touch with European places after a wildly inconsistent season so far.
One to watch: Rafael Leao
AC Milan forward Rafael Leao will be tested against his compatriot Ronaldo at San Siro.
The 21-year-old has been in shape in Ibrahimovic’s absence, scoring the fastest goal in Serie A history after just six seconds before Christmas, and also shot a goal from a tight angle on Sunday.
“Rafa is a player with enormous potential and of great quality. I expect a lot from him,” said Pioli of the Under-21 international who has scored 11 goals in 49 appearances for Milan.
Key stats:
40 – Inter goals in 15 games
27 – AC Milan’s unbeaten league streak
17 – Consecutive Serie A matches in which AC Milan have scored at least two goals
8 – Cagliari’s winless streak
4 – Milan players with at least four goals this season – Ibrahimovic, Theo Hernandez, Leao and Franck Kessie
3 – Juventus away wins in seven league games
Matches (all GMT times)
Wednesday
Cagliari v Benevento (1130), Sassuolo v Genoa, Crotone v Roma, Lazio v Fiorentina, Turin v Hellas Verona, Sampdoria v Inter Milan, Bologna v Udinese, Atalanta v Parma (all 1400), Naples v Spezia (1700), AC Milan against Juventus (1945)
ea / td
