Sampdoria – AC Milan. Mark O’Haire’s prediction

AC Milan gave all-conquering Juventus a serious test of their credentials last weekend but their 2-1 defeat signalled the end for Sinisa Mihajlovic with the Serbian sacked following a winless run of five games.

It was a curious call from the outset but internal politics rendered Mihajlovic’s future infeasible and so the Rossoneri moved quickly to appoint Cristian Brocchi on an interim basis until the end of the season.

Brocchi said he’d be looking for his team to take the initiative and not sit back, preferring to press opponents and take on an aggressive mentality. The new head coach is said to favour a 4-3-1-2 system with Giacomo Bonaventura playing behind a front pairing of Carlos Bacca and Mario Balotelli.

Since the start of last season, AC Milan have won just eight of their 35 away days but a whopping 22/35 (63%) have featured winning Both Teams To Score bets and it’s the angle that makes most appeal, considering Brocchi intentions to play front-foot football.

Sampdoria’s 2-0 win against Udinese made it three clean sheets in six for Vincenzo Montella’s men, an impressive improvement considering the Blucerchiati were shipping 1.80 goals-per-game in the preceding 26 Serie A contests.

But the hosts are without the suspended Andrea Ranocchia here, meaning Niklas Moisander will play in the centre of the defensive trio, with Modibo Diakite favourite to play on his left side, disrupting Montella’s favoured and trusted backline operators.

Sampdoria’s decent recent run has moved them eight points clear of both Udinese and Carpi and their W14-D14-L7 return since the beginning of 2014/15 at the Marassi makes them dangerous opposition. But with survival all but assured, a key backline presence missing and a AC Milan side eager to attack, I’m happy taking BTTS.

Both Teams To Score has proven a profitable formula in 19/35 (54%) of Samp’s home matches over the past 18 months and odds of 1.72 are more than fair considering.