AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund are in action this evening in what is a huge game for both teams in the Champions League.
The German side can qualify for the round of 16 with a win at San Siro, whilst Milan could find themselves out of the competition if they lose and Paris Saint-Germain win against Newcastle at the Parc des Princes.
To ensure victory, Stefano Pioli is expected to use a 4-2-3-1 formation that will see Ruben Loftus-Cheek play in a more advanced role behind Olivier Giroud. You can read the full preview here, while below are the best stats ahead of the game…
The stats
➤ Milan are set to host Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League for the first time since a 1-0 defeat in the second group stage in 2002-03. Milan had won their two previous home games against Dortmund (4-1 in the 1957-58 European Cup, 3-1 in the 2001-02 UEFA Cup).
➤ Borussia Dortmund have lost four of their last five away matches against Italian sides in UEFA European competition (D1), since a 2-0 victory over Udinese in October 2008 in a UEFA Cup game.
➤ Milan have only lost one of their last 16 home games in European competition against German sides (W11 D4), although that one defeat did come against Borussia Dortmund (0-1 in the UEFA Champions League in 2002-03).
➤ After their victory over Paris Saint-Germain on MD4, Milan boss Stefano Pioli will be aiming to win consecutive games in the UEFA Champions League for only the second time as a manager – previously doing so in February this year (a run of three). This will be his 23rd game he has overseen in the competition.
➤ Following consecutive wins over Newcastle (1-0 away and 2-0 at home), Borussia Dortmund will be looking to win three UEFA Champions League games in a row for the first time since November 2020 (a run of three under Lucien Favre).
➤ Milan have only scored twice in their four UEFA Champions League games this season, with only Benfica (1) netting fewer so far. However, only Internazionale (-3.8) have underperformed against their expected goals total by a bigger margin than Milan in the group stage this term (-3.7 – two goals from 5.7 xG).
➤ Borussia Dortmund haven’t conceded in any of their last three games in the UEFA Champions League, while they haven’t kept four consecutive clean sheets in the competition since April-October 2014, under Jürgen Klopp (a run of four).
➤ Should Borussia Dortmund win this game, Edin Terzic (41y 29d) would be the youngest manager to beat Milan at the Giuseppe Meazza in the UEFA Champions League since Pep Guardiola (40y 309d) in November 2011 (Milan 2-3 Barcelona).
➤ Rafael Leão leads all Milan players in the UEFA Champions League this season for chances created from open play (8), dribbles completed (15) and progressive carries (34). After his goal against Paris Saint-Germain last time out, he could net in consecutive games in the competition for the first time here.
➤ Borussia Dortmund defender Mats Hummels has the most combined tackles and interceptions in the UEFA Champions League this season (24). Indeed, he is just one of three players with 10+ tackles and 10+ interceptions in this tournament so far, along with Milan’s Fikayo Tomori and Galatasaray’s Abdülkerim Bardakci.
