3 Key Issues for Sinisa Mihajlovic Ahead of the Milan Derby

Sinisa Mihajlovic has had little time to ease himself into the Milan job. In what will be only his third league game in charge, he faces the galling prospect of a derby with Internazionale.

The Derby della Madonnina is a clash of great significance and tradition, although recently, the fixture has lacked its usual quality with its participants lacking form. Both Milan and Inter have reassembled with grand ambitions for the 2015/16 season, however, with Mihajlovic one of the major players.

As coach of Milan, he will have a huge say in the way this Sunday's derby goes. The match comes very early in his tenure as the Rossoneri's head coach and acts as a huge test both for him and the club's multitude of new players.

If Milan are to be victorious in this first derby of the season, there are several key issues Mihajlovic must consider.

Predicting the Inter line-up

Milan invested fairly heavily to bring in new players over the summer, with Alessio Romagnoli, Juraj Kucka, Andrea Bertolacci, Mario Balotelli, Luiz Adriano and Carlos Bacca joining the club.

The sheer quantity of new faces has arguably made Mihajlovic's process of team improvement harder in the short term. This is something Inter's coach, Roberto Mancini, can empathise with.

While Milan had a disastrous 2014/15 season, finishing 10th in the league and missing out on European football for the second consecutive year, Inter were almost as bad, as they sunk to an eighth-place finish.

Mancini's return to the club in late 2014 did little to stem the poor results, as Inter underwhelmed on a frequent basis. And on the back of such ineptitude, they—like Milan—decided to go hunting for new players, undertaking some serious squad surgery in an attempt to return to the top of Serie A.

The Nerazzurri made 10 signings, including Brazilian international Miranda, French ball-winning midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia and Montenegrin forward Stevan Jovetic. Four of those 10—Alex Telles, Felipe Melo, Adem Ljajic and Ivan Perisic—arrived towards the end of the summer transfer window.

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Inter's level of player turnover, in particular their four late signatures, means Mihajlovic has a tough task on his hands simply to understand exactly what personnel Inter will utilise this weekend. If he can roughly estimate their line-up, his own job will be made a lot easier.

Impose or counter-attack?

From the moment he arrived at Milan, Mihajlovic has practised a 4-3-1-2 system. Nominally, the formation is the exact same one he used at Sampdoria, while it is also extremely similar in interpretation.

One defensive midfield enforcer sits in front of a back four, from where both full-backs are expected to push on, while further up, a trequartista operates behind a strike partnership. This is undoubtedly the formation Mihajlovic will opt for against Inter, though he may need to make changes specifically for this game.

Any changes made will most likely revolve around central midfield. This has been a troublesome area for Milan thus far this season, with new signing Bertolacci and Giacomo Bonaventura struggling to stamp their mark on the opening two league fixtures.

Part of the problem is both of these players offer more creativity than solidity. As far as the balance of the team goes, their presence in the centre means Milan, intentionally or not, often end up in a 4-1-3-2 shape, which leaves them open for counter-attacks.

Inter are also likely to set up in a 4-3-1-2 system though with a more pragmatic midfield three perhaps made up of Gary Medel, Kondogbia and Fredy Guarin.

If this is the case, Milan will have a tough time maintaining possession in midfield, and thus Mihajlovic may be better served eschewing a more imposing tactical stance, perhaps by replacing Bonaventura with a more conservative midfielder such as Riccardo Montolivo so as not to cede too much control in the centre of the pitch.

Should Balotelli be risked?

I recently wrote Mario Balotelli could prove to be a steal for Milan after joining on a season-long loan from Liverpool. In timely fashion, the mercurial striker immediately started making the wrong sort of headlines, as he was caught speeding, per Football Italia (h/t Giornale di Brescia).

Such behaviour hardly strengthens his case to start against Inter, whom he previously played for, though the 25-year-old could still be an interesting option to have available.

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He performed well in a recent friendly against Mantova, scoring once, setting up another and winning a penalty. It's not a bad way to start on the pitch even if his actions off it tell another story.

Ultimately, Milan's new look strike duet of Carlos Bacca and Luiz Adriano have yet to combine effectively in the league. Their display against Perugia in the Coppa Italia showed great promise, but Balotelli's arrival appears to offer some much-needed competition up front.

His off-pitch antics may not make him a poster boy, but his caprice could actually benefit Milan on it. Against his former team, with the critical words of Mihajlovic ringing in his ears, Balotelli is a potential game-changer coming off the bench.