Match Preview: AC Milan vs Tottenham Hotspur H2H, Form, Players To Watch and Prediction

AC Milan host Antonio Conte back at the San Siro as Tottenham Hotspur visit for the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie. Stefano Pioli will stick with his 3-4-3 up against Conte’s 3-4-2-1 in what should be a dynamic encounter on the counters. A huge result beckons for Milan as a win would be a massive upset.

H2H

Tottenham 2-1 Milan (1972)

Milan 1-1 Tottenham (1972)

Tottenham 0-0 Milan (2011)

Milan 0-1 Tottenham (2011)

Form Guide (all competitions)

Milan: L, L, L, L, W

Tottenham: L, W, W, W, L

Players to Watch

Rafael Leao

Leao will be hungry for an opportunity to make an impression against a Premier League side after the difficulty he had against Chelsea FC earlier in the year. The winger is having a difficult spell after the World Cup alongside the rest of the team. Today marks a month since his last goal and he is overdue to be back on the scoresheet as the best player in the squad. He will be running at Skipp and Romero through the more central role hence has a good opportunity to make a dent in that back line.6

Harry Kane

The striker has become the all time top scorer of his club and seems to find the back of the net even when the club are going through their ups ad downs. Kane will have a bone to pick with Olivier Giroud following the England/France encounter at the World Cup and the links of the French striker with other London rivals Arsenal FC and Chelsea. He has 19 goals across all competitions this season but only 1 goal in the Champions League thus far. He will be excited at the chance to face the abysmal Tatarusanu and increase his tally.

Alexis Saelemaekers

As a huge critic of Saelemaekers, I need to be the first to point out that he looks 1,000% better as a wing back than further up the pitch. The position allows his strengths to show and he has the opportunity to play a more defensive game. His crosses looked better, his pressing was impactful and moreover he looked comfortable covering more ground. He looks miles ahead of Calabria for that starting spot and should be able to match the intensity of Ivan Perisic tonight.

Prediction: Milan 1-1 Tottenham