Tottenham fail in the CL
AC Milan triumphs after tough exchange of blows
03/08/2023, 11:15 p.m
Antonio Conte is back at Tottenham Hotspur after gallbladder surgery – but the Italian coach cannot prevent the knockout in the Champions League round of 16. AC Milan maintain their lead from the first leg and are among the eight best teams in Europe for the first time since 2012.
AC Milan have reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first time in eleven years. The Italian football champions drew 0-0 at Tottenham Hotspur in the second leg of the round of 16 and are through thanks to the 1-0 from the first comparison. When the round of eight is drawn on 17 March, Milan will be back for the first time since the 2011/12 season.
In a game that was tough for long stretches, the Londoners around star striker Harry Kane never found their rhythm, shortly before the end Argentina’s world champion Cristian Romero also saw the yellow-red card (77th). The Spurs hardly had any chances to score – the return of team manager Antonio Conte didn’t inspire the Londoners either. The 53-year-old had to have his gallbladder removed in early February, after which Conte recovered in his native Italy.
On his comeback, Conte saw a first half without any notable highlights. As with the first meeting of the two teams, the game in London did not turn out to be particularly attractive. Knowing that they had the advantage from the first leg, Milan were initially cautious and Spurs hardly created any chances. The best was a deflected ball from former Schalke player Malick Thiaw in the first half (35′), which AC goalkeeper Mike Maignan saved with a foot.
Tottenham seemed inhibited in the second half as well, hardly a structured attack rolled in the direction of guest goalkeeper Maignan. Instead, Milan had the great opportunity to score the opening goal – Brahim Diaz (51st) but couldn’t get the ball past Tottenham goalkeeper Fraser Forster.
The Spurs did not become dangerous, they only came to conclusions with individual actions. Pierre Emile Höjbjerg (64th) failed in one of these actions against Maignan. As the game progressed, Tottenham had to increase the risk, which gave the guests room for counterattacks. In injury time, Milan’s keeper Maignan saved a header from Harry Kane (90’+3′), on the other side Divock Origi (90’+4) hit the post. In the rain of London, however, Spurs ultimately appeared too harmless overall.