AC Milan host Venezia at the San Siro on 28 August 2026 for Serie A's second matchday, with Rúben Amorim taking charge of his first home fixture since arriving in June to replace Massimiliano Allegri following Milan's Champions League miss. The Torino win last weekend showed pressing intent with Cissè and Rabiot both getting on the scoresheet, though a late scramble to hold the lead suggests Amorim's shape is still bedding in. Milan beat Torino 2-1 away and sit fifth with three points, whereas Venezia are yet to earn one having lost 0-2 to Lecce despite holding the ball for long stretches and creating almost nothing going forward. A win against a promoted side already missing five first team players would be hard to read as anything more than a baseline expectation for a squad of Milan's standing but it matters for rhythm and for showing Amorim's 3-4-2-1 can produce consistent home dominance. Venezia, promoted as Serie B champions under Giovanni Stroppa, face an early stress test of whether their pragmatic 3-5-2 can absorb the kind of pressure a top half Serie A side generates.
Amorim and Stroppa have never met as managers. Amorim's approach centres on a high press and quick ball recovery through the lines, while Stroppa since taking over on 1 July 2025 has built Venezia around a compact defensive shape and an aerial threat from set pieces. These are almost opposite philosophies and the friction between Amorim's advancing wing backs and Stroppa's low, organised block is where most of the tactical interest lies.
Milan have problems to navigate in attack. Rafael Leão is doubtful with a muscle issue that may also be tied to his transfer situation, which is a significant loss given how much of the attack runs through him and Fikayo Tomori and Youssouf Fofana are both out for transfer related reasons. Venezia are in considerably worse shape: Andrea Adorante is ruled out until around October with a hernia and back problem, Marin Šverko has a hip injury, Thierry Correia is sidelined with a hamstring complaint, Armel Bella-Kotchap is absent with a shoulder issue and Toma Bašić is missing with a thigh injury. Stroppa heads into this with a thin bench and limited options across the pitch.
Amorim's shape lets Milan dominate the central lanes and against Venezia's compact 3-5-2 the obvious approach is to press high, force turnovers in midfield and exploit the space behind Stroppa's advancing wing backs on the recovery. If Milan's wing backs push high and Venezia's mirror them, the space left in behind becomes the target, which is where Ramos' movement is most dangerous. Gonçalo Ramos leading the line against a back three missing its usual anchors makes that a problem Venezia will struggle to manage for ninety minutes. Rabiot's physicality creates a different challenge for Stroppa: Busio needs space to dictate tempo and Rabiot's presence in the middle of the park denies him that, pushing Venezia's captain into more reactive positions than he would like. With Leão potentially absent, more responsibility falls on Cissè, who already scored on debut at Torino and whoever else Amorim has integrated into the forward rotation. Venezia's best hope is Akor Adams in form and John Yeboah on the counter, looking to punish Milan's wing backs when they push high, though if Stroppa's thin bench limits his substitution options his wing backs will have covered an enormous amount of ground by the time the game enters its final quarter and that is when the block is most likely to break.
Milan have dominated this fixture historically, winning 22 of 33 meetings, with the last San Siro encounter in September 2024 ending 4-0 to the hosts. Venezia lean heavily on set pieces but losing Šverko and Bella-Kotchap hurts their aerial presence at both ends, handing Milan an extra route to goal through Maignan's long throws and Ramos' movement in the box.
Amorim's pressing structure is well suited to picking apart a promoted side missing five players and Ramos' movement against a depleted back three combined with Rabiot's late runs from midfield should be enough to see the hosts through even without Leão. Venezia will probably nick one on the counter through Adams but Milan should have enough control in the final third to see it out. AC Milan 2-1 Venezia.
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
