AC Milan and Genoa clash at the San Siro on Thursday evening for their next Serie A encounter.
Milan will look to continue their 16 match unbeaten run in the league alongw ith their head-to-head record against Genoa which sees them undefeated in their last nine meetings.
AC Milan vs Genoa – Match preview and team news
- Date: Thursday, 8th January.
- Kick-off: 7:45pm BST.
- Venue: San Siro, Milan.
AC Milan team news
Milan will be without striker Santiago Gimenez, who underwent surgery on his right ankle in December and remains sidelined until late January. The Mexican forward has been ruled out since sustaining the injury against Atalanta in late October.
Christopher Nkunku remains doubtful for Thursday’s fixture after training individually due to a persistent thigh and ankle problem. The French forward has been struggling with the knock since the victory over Hellas Verona on December 28, despite scoring his first two Serie A goals in that match. Manager Massimiliano Allegri confirmed: “We hope to have him back in Florence (vs Fiorentina on Jan 11th), as the knock on his ankle is still bothering him”.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek trained separately on Monday due to a minor physical discomfort, though the midfielder is available for selection. Allegri stated: “Yesterday, he trained separately, but tomorrow he’ll be available”.
Despite concerns over their fitness, both Rafael Leao and Christian Pulisic are expected to start together for only the second time in Serie A this season. Leao is managing adductor pain while Pulisic continues to deal with a flexor problem.
New signing Niclas Füllkrug made an encouraging debut off the bench against Cagliari, and Allegri praised the German striker’s impact: “He entered the game very well. Tonight, he was very useful with his headers and in protecting the ball”. The West Ham loanee could feature again as Milan navigate a congested fixture schedule.
Genoa team news
Genoa’s injury list continues to mount as they fight for survival. Jean Onana remains on international duty with Cameroon at the Africa Cup of Nations and will miss the trip to Milan.
Junior Messias, Albert Grønbæk, and Maxwel Cornet are all sidelined with muscle injuries and are not expected to return until mid-January. Goalkeeper Benjamin Siegrist is also out until mid-January with a broken finger, while Sebastian Otoa is a doubt after sustaining a thigh injury in training.
Lorenzo Colombo, on loan from Milan, is expected to lead the line for Genoa. The young striker scored against his parent club earlier in the season while playing for Monza and netted in Genoa’s 1-1 draw with Pisa last weekend. Manager Daniele De Rossi has few attacking options available, making Colombo’s role crucial.
Form
AC Milan
Milan made a winning start to 2026 with a 1-0 victory at Cagliari on January 2, courtesy of Rafael Leao’s second-half strike. That result temporarily moved them to the top of the Serie A table, though Inter reclaimed first place with a 3-1 win over Bologna the following day.
Genoa
Daniele De Rossi’s side are entrenched in a relegation battle, sitting 17th in the table with just 15 points from 18 matches. They are only three points clear of the relegation zone and desperately need results to ease the growing pressure.
The appointment of De Rossi led to an immediate improvement, but that momentum has since dissipated.
Genoa have gone four matches without a win, drawing 1-1 with bottom-side Pisa in their most recent outing before suffering three consecutive defeats to Roma (3-1), Atalanta (1-0), and Inter (2-1).
Predicted lineups
AC Milan: Maignan; Tomori, Gabbia, Pavlovic; Saelemaekers, Fofana, Modric, Rabiot, Bartesaghi; Pulisic, Leao
Genoa: Leali; Marcandalli, Ostigard, Vazquez; Norton-Cuffy, Malinovskyi, Frendrup, Thorsby, Martin; Vitinha, Colombo
How to watch AC Milan vs Genoa?
UK Fans can watch the match live on DAZN.
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