Tottenham Hotspur vs AC Milan

Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is the venue as Tottenham Hotspur and AC Milan go head-to-head in the return leg of their Champions League last-16 tie, with the visitors holding a narrow 1-0 lead.

Tottenham Hotspur’s quest to reach the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time since a famous runner-up finish in 2018/19 rests upon their ability to bounce back from back-to-back 1-0 defeats to Sheffield United and Wolverhampton Wanderers in the FA Cup and Premier League, respectively. Curiously, though, ‘Spurs’ have advanced into the next European knockout round twice in the last three ties after losing the first leg. Adding to their confidence, the first-leg loss in Lombardy was Tottenham’s first defeat in five European clashes against Milan (W2, D2). Antonio Conte’s men have gone from strength to strength at home of late, winning their last three competitive outings in North London without conceding, including a pair of 2-0 victories over fellow cross-town rivals Chelsea and West Ham United.

In the meantime, visiting AC Milan slumped to a 2-1 Serie A defeat at Fiorentina last weekend, having won four previous competitive games ‘to nil’ beforehand. But ‘I Rossoneri’ can draw confidence from their impressive 86% win ratio across their 21 previous Champions League ties in which they’ve won the first leg. Moreover, the reigning Serie A champions have won their last three Champions League fixtures, accounting for their longest winning streak in Europe’s premium competition since 2005. On the downside, Stefano Pioli’s men have gone winless in 18 of their 21 visits to English sides in major European competitions (D7, L13), including three consecutive defeats in London by an aggregate score of 9-1.