After selling Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva to PSG and releasing several high-earning veterans, AC Milan kick off their new life of austerity with a friendly against Schalke in Germany.
There may be an unusual hint of tension in the air for a pre-season game, after the German side accused the Rossoneri of tapping up their young Greek centre-back Kyriakos Papadopoulos as a possible replacement for the departed Thiago Silva.
This extra spice should hopefully make for a lively encounter, and Schalke's extra match fitness could prove vital.
Die Konigsblauen already have two pre-season games under their belt, with a largely full-strength team having secured a couple of comfortable victories against domestic lower-division sides.
With this in mind, it is no surprise to see Huub Stevens' men are slight favourites at 33/25 (2.32) with Panbet to come out on top this evening.
Whilst a "provisional" Milan side did compete in the Trofeo TIM tournament at the weekend, the majority of the squad have only just returned to training thanks to Italy's fine run at Euro 2012.
With key man Alexandre Pato away at the Olympics and the rest of the depleted team yet to work their way back to full fitness, Massimiliano Allegri's side seem unlikely to beat the Germans in their own back yard, at odds of 48/25 (2.92).
The last time Milan travelled to the Veltins Arena they secured a 2-2 draw in the Champions League, and you can get odds of 5/2 (3.50) on the two teams cancelling each other out again this time.
Whilst Milan's composure and discipline should be enough to keep them in the game initially, eventually you would expect Schalke's superior stamina to prove decisive.
Logically then, a bet on the Germans securing a victory after drawing at half-time seems sensible, at tempting 27/5 (6.40) odds.
|
|
BET |
OF THE |
DAY |
| BEST BET |
VALUE BET |
| Schalke to win at 7/5 (2.40) with Panbet |
Draw at half time/Schalke at full time at 5/1 (6.00) with Panbet |
Sign up with Panbet and bet on Al's tips for this game
Al Hain-Cole is a Liverpool fan, experienced tipster and avid follower of European football. He specialises in accumulators and if you would like to read more from Al you can follow him on Twitter here.
Follow GoalBetting on