AC Milan vs. Bologna live stream, projected lineups: Where to watch Coppa Italia final, prediction, odds, pick

AC Milan will face Bologna in the 2024-25 Coppa Italia final after the team coached by Sergio Conceicao knocked Inter out of the semifinals after an exciting Coppa Italia semifinals while Bologna faced and eliminated Empoli before the final that will take place on May 14 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. This will be the third Coppa Italia final for Bologna, after winning the 1970 and 1974 editions. While this is the first final in more than 50 years for the team, their manager Vincenzo Italiano lost the 2023 edition to Inter when he was the Fiorentina head coach. AC Milan, on the other hand, have won five Coppa Italia editions in their history, the last one in 2003, but also lost both 2016 and 2018 finals against Juventus.

This might be the second trophy of the season for the Rossoneri, after winning the Supercoppa Italiana on January against the Inter, one week after Portuguese manager Sergio Conceicao was appointed to replace Paulo Fonseca on the AC Milan bench. For both sides, AC Milan in particular, winning the Coppa Italia would also become their biggest chance to qualify for the Europa League for next season as the winning team will automatically clinch a spot for the 2025-26 edition of the European tournament. Before knocking out Inter in the two-legged semifinals, AC Milan eliminated Sassuolo and AS Roma while Bologna won against Monza and Atalanta before knocking out Empoli in the semifinals. Here's what you need to know:

How to watch Coppa Italia final

• Date: Wednesday, May 23 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
• Location: Stadio Olimpico -- Rome, Italy
• Live stream: Paramount+
• Odds: AC Milan +150; Draw +225; Bologna +185

What AC Milan are saying

AC Milan manager Sergio Conceicao spoke about the status of his team ahead of the final in the pre-match press conference: "A season is made up of episodes and moments. It will certainly be a great pleasure if we manage to win this trophy and give joy to the fans in this difficult year. As you know, we have this trophy in our heads, from the outside we seem angry but it is not like that. We have this immense pleasure of playing in a final and facing this beautiful team that is Bologna. There is no fear, there is normal adrenaline. The group is calm, but not tranquility because we are waiting for an important match. Leao is back, but I won't tell you who will play between Jovic and Gimenez".

Predicted lineups

AC Milan XI: Mike Maignan; Fikayo Tomori, Matteo Gabbia, Strahinja Pavlovic; Alex Jimenez, Youssouf Fofana, Tijani Reijnders, Theo Hernandez; Christian Pulisic, Luka Jovic, Rafael Leao.

Bologna XI: Lukasz Skorupski; Lorenzo De Silvestri, Sam Beukema, John Lucumi, Juan Miranda; Remo Freuler, Lewis Ferguson, Jens Odgaard; Riccardo Orsolini, Santiago Castro, Nicolo Cambiaghi.

Player to watch

Christian Pulisic, AC Milan -- The American winger might win his second trophy at the club since he joined the Italian giants in the summer 2023 from Chelsea. Pulisic has been one of the best players for AC Milan this season as he's scored 17 goals and provided 12 assists to his teammates so far, but winning the Coppa Italia is probably the best chance to see him playing European soccer next season ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

Storyline to watch

Can Conceicao save his job? If AC Milan win their second trophy of the season, it's still not completely ruled out that the club will decided to replace Conceicao in the summer, and there are still big chances for another manager to be appointed by AC Milan after such a disappointing season. Conceicao has already won the Supercoppa Italiana this season, one week after the Italian team appointed the former FC Porto head coach to replace Paulo Fonseca on December 29.

Prediction

AC Milan are in good shape and are coming from four consecutive wins for the first time this season. After winning the Supercoppa Italiana in January against Inter, Milan could win two trophies in a single season for the first time since 2007-08 when they won the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup. Pick: AC Milan 2, Bologna 1.

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