BORUSSIA DORTMUND v AC MILAN: MATCH PREVIEW

Our first European away day of the season takes us to one of the most iconic venues in European football. Borussia Dortmund v AC Milan is a fixture that hasn't been played in the Champions League for over 20 years and is a big crossroads in the season for both sides, who go into this one in sizzling-hot form. Kick-off is at 21:00 CEST  at the Westfalenstadion; until then, let's take a closer look at the game with our Match Preview.

LATEST FROM MILANELLO
The Rossoneri aren't expected to shuffle the pack too heavily following three straight wins in the league, as they go in search of their first victory of the season in Europe. Thiaw should be restored to the starting line-up alongside Tomori in the centre of defence. With Loftus-Cheek out, Pioli is likely to go with a midfield trio of Musah, Reijnders and Pobega; the unknown is who, out of the American and the Dutchman, will start in the regista role. We will probably see the same attacking trio of Pulisic, Giroud and Leão that started against Lazio.

"We need to play with the right mentality and do all we can to try to win", Coach Pioli said in the pre-match press conference. "The game is important in the group, but there's a long way to go. Dortmund play attacking football; they're quick and have a lot of quality". Malick Thiaw added: "They're a top side and have great fans. I think that'll be a fantastic atmosphere; we're happy to be here and can't wait to play".

LATEST FROM BORUSSIA DORTMUND
Much like AC Milan, the Schwarzgelben are on a three-game winning streak (most recently having beaten Hoffenheim 3-1) in the Bundesliga. Dortmund currently sits in third place, two points behind league-leaders Leverkusen. The German giants have alternated between two tactical set-ups so far this season: a back 3 and a back 4. It is likely, however, that Terzić will opt for a more conservative (but still potent) 3-5-2 formation for their first home game in Europe in the current campaign. Their predicted line-up is as follows: Kobel in goal; Süle, Hummels and Schlotterbeck in midfield; Ryerson and Wolf flanking a midfield of Sabitzer, Emre Can and Brandt; Adeyemi and Malen up front.

"AC Milan have got great players and have made good investments, despite losing two important squad members," Edin Terzić said in his pre-match press conference. "They have something special: a great combination of intensity and technical excellence. We'll need to put in a top performance because we're facing a side that can win a game at a moment's notice. They're a tough team to face, but our fans will help us, and I'm sure we'll play well."

PRE-MATCH STATS

• Borussia Dortmund and AC Milan face off for the first time since the second group stage of the 2002/03 Champions League; in that season, both matches were won 1-0 by the away side.
• AC Milan are unbeaten in 12 of their 14 games against German opposition in the Champions League. The last German team that the Rossoneri played against in the group stage was Schalke in 2005/06 (2-2 in Gelsenkirchen, 3-2 at San Siro).
• The Rossoneri have kept a clean sheet in each of their last three Champions League group-stage games. The last time that AC Milan went on a longer run without conceding at this stage of the competition was in 2002/03: four, including one against Dortmund.
• Christian Pulisic's next game will be his 50th in the Champions League, more than double any other US player in the tournament. The Rossoneri's number 11 played for tonight's opposition: of his 49 UCL appearances, 22 were with BVB.

WHERE TO WATCH AC MILAN ON TV
In Italy, Borussia Dortmund v AC Milan will be shown on Amazon Prime Video at 21:00 CEST. Starting at 19:30 CEST, until kick-off, there's all the build-up on Milan TV's Matchday. After the game, we will have interviews and Stefano Pioli's post-match conference.

LATEST FROM THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Both Group F games will kick off at the same time, with Newcastle United v Paris Saint-Germain also starting at 21:00 CEST. The Parisians are top on 3 points (following a 2-0 win over Dortmund on matchday 1), followed by AC Milan and the Magpies on 1, Borussia Dortmund on 0.

REFEREE
Polish official Szymon Marciniak will take charge of the game at the Westfalenstadion. One of Europe's most experienced referees, he took charge of the World Cup final between Argentina and France and the UCL final between Manchester City and Inter last season. He has officiated matches involving the Rossoneri on three occasions, including two - Dinamo Zagreb 0-4 AC Milan and Napoli 1-1 AC Milan - in 2022/23. His only game refereeing Dortmund was against Real Madrid in 2016/17. It's an entirely Polish team of officials, with linesmen Sokolnicki and Listkiewicz and fourth official Musiał. Kwiatkowski is on VAR duty (assisted by Lasyk).

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