AC Milan vs Pescara preview - No need for Mario says Allegri

Posted Sunday, December 16, 2012 by PA

AC Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri feels he has no need for Mario Balotelli as his young stars continue to lead the club's spirited revival.

The Rossoneri are rumoured to be among the frontrunners to offer the Italy striker a route out of Manchester City in the transfer window, but Allegri feels he already enough talent at his disposal to boost the club up the Serie A table.

M'Baye Niang, 17, scored his first Milan goal since joining from Caen this summer in Thursday's 3-0 Coppa Italia victory over Reggina, with 20-year-old Stephan El Shaarawy notching a 16th goal of the season against the Serie B side.

Milan are now looking to consolidate a recent strong run - that has brought them up to seventh place following a poor start - at the expense of relegation-threatened Pescara.

Allegri told acmilan.com: "It was an important win and the players deserve to get through to the next round. It was important to get that done and now we'll think about Sunday.

"Niang is young, he has quality and he has to improve. He'll be given time to grow and he'll definitely grow.

"It's never good to make comparisons with Balotelli. Niang is a different player to Mario and he should be given the space to grow."

Dutch midfielder Nigel de Jong has been ruled out for six months with a ruptured Achilles tendon but defender Ignazio Abate returned to action against Reggina and could feature.

Cristiano Bergodi registered his first win as Pescara boss last weekend, a 2-0 home win over Genoa ending a run of four consecutive defeats.

The 48-year-old is now pondering a January approach for Grifone striker Ciro Immobile - who helped Pescara to promotion with 28 goals in 37 games under Zdenek Zeman.

Bergodi told La Repubblica: "I don't know about the negotiations, I just gave my go-ahead.

"This is something we have to look at through January while we try to get the most out of the current squad. Like all the teams that are fighting for survival, we will look to reinforce."

Defender Uros Cosic hurt his ankle in training this week and will not feature at the San Siro, with Manuele Blasi and Giuseppe Colucci continuing to struggle for fitness.

Pescara's last top-flight meeting with Milan ended in a 4-0 victory for the Rossoneri back in 1993, with Fabio Capello's side claiming a remarkable 5-4 win at the Stadio Adriatico the previous September.