AC Milan’s 2024-25 Champions League campaign resumes tonight with a trip to Slovakia to face Slovan Bratislava at the Štadión Tehelné pole.
The mood surrounding Milan is not entirely positive at the moment, it would be fair to say. The team were jeered off the field following a 0-0 draw against Juventus on Saturday that leaves them 10 points off top.
Booking UEFA Champions League Final Tickets might seem a long way off, but the switch to European competitions provides a chance to change focus and the target must be to win the remaining four games in the initial phase, to get into the top eight.
Our pre-match preview has all the information you need, from the latest projected starting line-ups to some insight on Slovan and the ones to watch for the game.
Key facts and stats
➤ Slovan Bratislava have faced Milan on two previous occasions in Europe, with both of those ending in defeats in qualifying for the 1992-93 UEFA Champions League (0-1 at home and 0-4 away – second round qualifiers).
➤ This will be Slovan Bratislava’s first game against an Italian side in European competition since the 2014-15 campaign, when they lost home (0-2) and away (0-3) in the UEFA Europa League group stage against Napoli.
➤ Milan’s last game in major European competition against a Slovakian side dates back to the 1978-79 season – after two legs, the Italians needed a penalty shootout to progress past Lokomotiva Kosice in the first round of the UEFA Cup (1-1 on aggregate, won 7-6 on penalties).
➤ After victories over Club Brugge and Real Madrid, Milan are looking to win three consecutive matches in major European competition for the first time since February 2023. The last time they won three such matches in a row by 2+ goals was in April 2005 (3); a season in which they finished as UEFA Champions League runners-up.
➤ Slovan Bratislava have lost each of their last seven games in major European competition, while only once have they had a longer such losing streak (nine games between November 2011 and December 2014).
➤ Courtesy of 3-1 victories over both Club Brugge and Real Madrid in their last two UEFA Champions League games, Milan netted as many goals in those two as in their previous 10 games in the competition combined (6). The last time they scored 3+ goals in three consecutive European Cup/Champions League games was in September 1989 (3).
➤ Slovan Bratislava are one of five teams who are yet to win a single point in the UEFA Champions League this season (L4), while they have the worst goal difference (-13) of any side in 2024-25 (two goals, 15 conceded).
➤ Only 7.7% of the minutes Milan have handed out this season in the UEFA Champions League have been to Italian players. The only Italian side to award a lower percentage of minutes to Italians in a season is Internazionale in 2007-08 (3.2%) and 2009-10 (7.5%).
➤ Tijjani Reijnders is Milan’s top scorer in the UEFA Champions League this season (3). Excluding penalties, the last player to net more in a single campaign for the Italian side was Zlatan Ibrahimovic in 2010-11 (4), while the last midfielder to do so was Kaká in 2006-07 (7).
➤ Milan’s Rafael Leão has completed more dribbles than any other player in the UEFA Champions League this season (20). Indeed, his 20 are the most by a Portuguese player through their first four appearances in a single campaign since Cristiano Ronaldo in 2006-07 (22 for Manchester United).