Ibrahimovic will not play against Juventus because he is not Superman

Milan coach Stefano Pioli said striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is not a superman and therefore will not recover in time to meet Juventus in Serie A on Sunday.

The veteran Swedish striker returned to the courts in the last round after suffering a knee injury in May, and scored a goal in the victory over Lazio, but he missed the loss against Liverpool in the middle of last week in the Champions League due to an Achilles tendon injury.

"Ibra would like to be Superman, but he is not. We have assessed his condition and he has not improved much," Pioli told a news conference on Saturday, ahead of the upcoming derby in Turin.

"He and (Olivier) Giroud will not be able to play because of (the French striker's) lower back injury. We will rely on the players available."

Milan returned to the Champions League for the first time since the 2013-2014 season, after finishing third in the league last season.

Milan started the league well and won the first three matches, while Juventus made a bad start and only had one point.

"We feel that we are a strong team and we try to win every game. The competition is strong in the Italian league and the levels of the top teams are close. Against Juventus, it will be a strong match and the opponent can still win the league title," said Pioli.

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