A quick goal and a careful defense celebrated the success: Tottenham crashed on the solid defense of Milan

MILAN – AC Milan put themselves in a better starting position ahead of the return leg at the San Siro with a 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur thanks to Brahim Diaz’s seventh-minute goal. Rematches are scheduled for Wednesday, March 8.

Tottenham arrived at the San Siro without several injured players, so youngsters Oliver Skipp and Pape Matar Sarr appeared in the midfield. The injured captain Hugo Lloris did not play either, who was replaced in goal by Fraser Forster.

He conceded in the seventh minute. On the left side of the penalty area, Theo Hernandez prevailed in the fight, who fired sharply from an angle, Forster knocked out his shot and also pushed Brahim Diaz’s stop, but he already got the ball into the net the second time – 1:0. In the next few minutes, the spectators saw a balanced and combative duel with no major chances.

They didn’t come even after the change of sides, AC concentrated on defense and waited for the guests’ mistakes, but they didn’t rush into headless attacks either. The expected pressure of Spurs did not come, and on the contrary, the guests could have struck in the end, but the headers of Charles de Ketelaere and Malick Thiaw went just wide of the three posts.

First leg of the Champions League round of 16:

AC Milan – Tottenham Hotspur 1:0 (1:0)

Goal: 7. Diaz. Referee: Schärer (Switzerland), ŽK: Tonali, Hernandez – Romero, Dier

AC Milan: Tatarusanu – Kalulu, Kjaer, Thiaw – Saelemaekers (77. Messias), Krunič, Tonali (86. Pobega), Hernandez – Diaz (77. de Ketelaere), Leao (90.+2 Rebič) – Giroud

Tottenham: Forster – Lenglet (81. Davies), Dier, Romero – Royal, Skipp, Sarr, Perišič – Kulusevski (70. Richarlison), Kane, Son Heung-min (81. Danjuma)

• Author: © List
• Source: TASR