TOTTENHAM v AC MILAN: OPPONENT REVIEW

After the precious victory at San Siro courtesy of Brahim Díaz's winner, AC Milan visit Tottenham in search of Champions League quarter-final qualification, something they haven't done for eleven years. The last time the Rossoneri finished in the top eight of Europe's most elite competition was in 2012, with Massimiliano Allegri on the bench, when they eliminated Arsenal in the Round of 16 with a 4-3 aggregate scoreline. On the other hand, the team led by Antonio Conte, having won their group, will be forced to overturn the result of the first leg at San Siro in order to go through to the next round, an objective that Spurs have not achieved since 2018/19, when they reached the Final (lost 2-0 against Liverpool).

The Londoners, fourth in the Premier League with a three-point lead over the Reds (with a game in hand), were eliminated in the fifth round of the FA Cup by a second division team, Sheffield United. However, despite a season full of ups and downs, Conte's line-up remains fearsome to face, especially when at home. In fact, Tottenham have won five of their last seven home games in all competitions (2L), including the last three in the league against Manchester City, West Ham and Chelsea, which they won without conceding a goal.

HIGH PRESSING AND OFFENSIVE RECOVERIES, HOW TOTTENHAM CAN BE LETHAL
Like most teams coached by Antonio Conte, Tottenham tend to make the most of their players' interception capabilities and quick breakaways towards the opponent's goal. As evidence of the trend, Spurs have scored an impressive seven goals from offensive recoveries in the Premier League, fewer only than the record-breaking Manchester City, who have scored eight in Europe's top five leagues to date. At the same time, however, the London team have shown that they struggle to manage the ball in their own half of the pitch: they are also the team that has given up the most offensive recoveries (260), fewer only than Lazio (264) and Bournemouth (263) among the teams in Europe's top five leagues. 

On the other hand, in the same overview, AC Milan is the leader in terms of the number of chances created on the counter-attack: 37, at least nine more than any other side, with six goals scored as a result of this type of play in Serie A - fewer only than Paris Saint-Germain (eight) and Manchester United (seven). The Diavolo could therefore exploit precisely this limitation of their opponents, banking on a characteristic that has become predominant in Pioli's AC Milan.

HARRY KANE AND SON HEUNG-MIN: SPURS GO-TO MARKSMEN
Despite the fact that they did not shine in the first leg at San Siro, the Rossoneri's backline will have to watch out for two Spurs players in particular: Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son. The former, the best scorer in Tottenham's history in all competitions with 268 goals, has scored 20 times this season and has found the net in all of his last six Champions League matches at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (including the only one in this edition, scored in the home match against Eintracht Frankfurt in the group stage).

The latter, with two goals in this Champions League, remains a lethal element on the counter, not to mention that he is the first Asian player to have won the golden boot in the English top flight (23 goals in 2021/22, equalling Mohamed Salah).

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