AC Milan return to Champions League motion tonight as they tackle Feyenoord at De Kuip within the first leg of their play-off spherical tie.
Each groups come into the sport in lower than splendid circumstances, beginning with Milan and an actual lack of midfield depth, whereas the one cause they’re even taking part in at this stage is due to final month’s defeat to Dinamo Zagreb within the closing spherical.
Then there are Feyenoord, who at the moment sit fifth within the Eredivisie, misplaced their star striker Santiago Gimenez (to tonight’s opponents) on the finish of the winter window and sacked their head coach on Monday, that means a caretaker is in cost.
The 5 key battles
We merely have to start out with the competition which is essentially the most box-office: Santiago Giménez in opposition to David Hancko. Gimenez is the participant with the perfect minutes per objective ratio within the UEFA Champions League this season (min. 4 objectives), averaging one each 59 minutes (5 objectives in 5 appearances), and he bagged twice of their 3-0 win over Bayern within the penultimate league section sport.
Hancko in the meantime is the person who holds the Feyenoord again line collectively (or tries to) and is somebody the Mexican striker is aware of nicely. Milan additionally know him having confronted the Slovakia worldwide whereas he was with Sparta Praha, and the overall consensus is that he would be the subsequent big-money sale after Gimenez, with Juventus and Premier League sides linked.
In the meantime, on the different finish the principle menace for the house facet is Igor Paixão. In actual fact, solely Atalanta’s Charles De Ketelaere (5) recorded extra assists in the course of the UEFA Champions League league section this season than the Brazilian winger (4). Paixao has 5 objective contributions within the competitors this season with solely Giménez (6, this season) ever having extra throughout a UCL marketing campaign for Feyenoord.
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Kyle Walker was the primary of 5 signings to reach for Milan within the winter window, and he has already . The Englishman’s management and composure have been proof, serving to to settle a beforehand erratic again line, and there are few gamers extra used to massive European nights than him, even when Paixao might be a stern check given his direct nature, velocity and trickery.
Again to Milan’s assault, Christian Pulisic scored 4 objectives in the course of the Champions League league section this season, with Olivier Giroud the final participant to have extra for the membership (5 in 2022-23) in a single marketing campaign within the competitors. Within the course of, he additionally grew to become the primary USMNT participant to attain that many objectives in a UCL marketing campaign.
His two assists off the bench in opposition to Empoli on the weekend present simply how a lot the Rossoneri depend on him creatively, and it is going to be as much as Gijs Smal to try to cease him. Feyenoord truly signed a left-back in January in Quilindschy Hartman who was not named within the squad record, so the 27-year-old will look to restrict Pulisic and preserve his beginning spot past tonight.
Shifting to the midfield, Quentin Timber will doubtless be the person on the coronary heart of driving play for Feyenoord and the one who will look to do harm after they have the prospect in transition. He has six Eredivisie objectives already within the present marketing campaign and a few assists within the UCL, together with his tempo and physicality making him the engine.
On the opposite facet, Youssouf Fofana will attempt to do the very same job for Milan, balancing defensive obligations with making an attempt to construct on his six assists for the season. The Frenchman didn’t look too sharp in opposition to Empoli and was taken off at half-time, however in an end-to-end sport like tonight’s might be you’d relatively have Fofana than not.
There are different candidates equivalent to Tijjani Reijnders in opposition to Jakub Moder and Theo Hernandez versus Hadj Moussa, however we finish with what must be Milan’s principal menace – transition – and the hazard man in these moments: Rafael Leão. The Portugal worldwide accomplished 30 dribbles within the UEFA Champions League this season, essentially the most of any participant in the course of the league section.
Since making his debut within the competitors in September 2021, solely Vinícius Júnior (134) has accomplished extra on this interval than Leão (97). His opponent is anticipated to be Givairo Learn, an 18-year-old who has just lately established himself as a starter for De Stadionclub however could have not often had a harder check than this.
