SLOVAN BRATISLAVA v AC MILAN: MATCH PREVIEW

AC Milan prepare to face Slovan Bratislava on Matchday Five of the UEFA Champions League 2024/25. The rossoneri cannot take this match lightly as we look to consolidate our position in the standings compared to Slovan who are looking to climb up the table. We approach kick off, scheduled for 18:45 CET at the  Štadión Tehelné pole in Bratislava, with our Match Preview.

LATEST FROM MILANELLO
It worth putting the opaque display in Serie A against Juventus behind us and take influence from the character and determination shown in Madrid. The win at the Bernabéu seems like a long time ago but it was still November, a brilliant 3-1 win after beating Club Brugge. The calendar now seems to be lightening the load, in Slovakia it won't just be AC Milan wanting to take all of the points. On Saturday at San Siro the side did not show many positive signs, in a draw without much substance and which has furthered our position from the top of the table. Morata will miss the match due to suspension, Abraham will be ready to take his place. E. Royal is not 100%, Calabria is ready to replace him. It's a competition for places concerning the defensive duo, in attack Chukwueze and Pulisic are nearing a starting place.  

"We spoke about the importance of winning - the words of Mister Fonseca in the press conference on the eve of the match -, we will need the right attitude. Against the big sides we have played well but not so well against the smaller teams: we are working to improve, in the Champions League the motivations are inevitably greater. I know Slovan well, they are physical and we will need to be careful". 

LATEST FROM SLOVAN BRATISLAVA
Slovan Bratislava are experiencing a difficult period in the Champions League, a poor start with only losses and a few heavy losses, including the recent 1-4 home loss against Dinamo Zagreb. The Slovak side, coached by Vladimir Weiss, are stuck on 0 points and have a goal difference of -13. In the domestic league, however, they have dominated for years and are currently top. Last weekend they drew 1-1 to Košice. An opponent fully aware of the difficulties, wanting to stop the rot and trying to get a positive result thanks to the support of their fans. They will probably line up with a 4-2-3-1 formation, particular attention should be paid to Barsegyan and Strelec, without forgetting the ex-AC Milan player Kucka.  

"AC Milan are one of the best sides in Europe and a footballing giant - Weiss said - and the favourites but we will try to do our best. We can't wait, it's a huge honour. I expect AC Milan to be attacking, they have great players, there's no need to lose the lose the ball quickly and we have to capitalise on their weaknesses". 

PRE-MATCH NUMBERS

• AC Milan have played Slovan Bratislava twice in Europe, double win in the second round of qualification of the Champions League 1992/93 (1-0 at home and 4-0 away). 
• The rossoneri have not faced a Slovak opponent in any of the main European competitions since 1978/79: after a double clash, AC Milan needed penalties to beat Lokomotiv Košice in the first round of the UEFA Cup (1-1 on aggregate, 7-6 after penalties). 
• After wins against Club Brugge and Real Madrid, AC Milan could win three games in a row in the main European competitions for the first time since February 2023. Three successive wins scoring more than two goals has not happened since 2004/05, more than three goals in three successive games has not happened since September 1989. 
• Tijjani Reijnders (3 goals) is AC Milan's top scorer in the Champions League this year. Excluding penalties, Ibrahimović in 2010/11 (4 goals) and midfielder Kaká in 2006/07 (7 goals) have scored more. 
• Rafael Leão is the player that has completed the most dribbles in this Champions League (20, the most for a Portuguese player in the first four appearances of the competition since the time of Cristiano Ronaldo at Manchester United with 22 in 2006/07). 

WHERE TO WATCH SLOVAN BRATISLAVA v AC MILAN
In Italy, the match will be broadcast by Sky and NOW. To watch it in another country, you can check the "Where to Watch Milan on TV" section under "Abroad." On the Rossoneri channels, the Matchday show will air on Milan TV: live coverage starts at 5:45 PM leading up to kick-off, followed by interviews and Coach Fonseca's press conference. Don't miss the coverage on acmilan.com, the AC Milan Official App, official social media, and WhatsApp.

LATEST FROM CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
The referee will be José María Sánchez. The Spaniard has officiated the rossoneri on just one occasion (AC Milan 0-0 Newcastle, first game in the UCL 2023/24), no participation in officiation the Slovak side. Raúl Cabañero and Iñigo Prieto are the linesmen, Alejandro Muñiz Ruiz the fourth official and Carlos del Cerro Grande on VAR; Valentín Gómez AVAR.

Matchday Five will be a double game evening. On Tuesday at 18.45 CET Slovan Bratislava vs. AC Milan and Sparta Praha vs. Atlético Madrid. At 21.00 CET Barcelona vs. Brest, Bayern Munich vs. PSG, Inter vs. RB Leipzig, Bayer Leverkusen vs. RB Salzburg, Manchester City vs. Feyenoord, Sporting Lisbon vs. Arsenal and Young Boys vs. Atalanta. Wednesday at 18.45 CET Crvena Zvezda vs. Stuttgart and Sturm Graz vs. Girona. At 21.00 Aston Villa vs. Juventus, Bologna vs. Lille, Celtic vs. Club Brugge, Dinamo Zagreb vs. Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool vs. Real Madrid, Monaco vs. Benfica and PSV vs. Shakhtar Donetsk.

Standings: Liverpool 12; Sporting Lisbon, Monaco, Brest and Inter 10; Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund and Aston Villa 9; Atalanta 8; Manchester City, Juventus, Arsenal, Leverkusen, Lille, Celtic and Dynamo Zagreb 7; Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Benfica, AC Milan, Feyenoord, Club Brugge and Atlético Madrid 6; PSV 5; PSG, Sparta Praha, Stuttgart and Shakhtar Donetsk 4; Girona and RB Salzburg 3; Bologna 1; RB Leipzig, Sturm Graz, Young Boys, Crvena Zvezda and Slovan Bratislava 0.

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