For the first time in 16 seasons, AC Milan will step foot onto the field for a Champions League semi-final when they square off against Milan derby foes Inter Milan in Wednesday's first leg at San Siro.
Stefano Pioli's side clinched second spot in Group E before seeing off Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 in the quarter-finals, and a similarly tight 2-1 aggregate success over Napoli followed in the last eight.
Having ceded their Serie A crown to Napoli with a whimper, as well as going down 3-0 to Inter in the Supercoppa Italiana, success on the continent represents Milan's final chance to end a troubled season with a flourish, but the last four is unfamiliar territory to many currently donning the Rossoneri colours.
Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at Milan's record in the Champions League semi-finals ahead of Wednesday's first leg.
© Reuters
Combining both the old-style European Cup and current Champions League, Milan have progressed to the semi-finals 13 times down the years - including this season - the fourth-most of any team in history.
Only Real Madrid (32), Bayern Munich (20) and Barcelona (16) have taken part in the semis on more occasions than Milan, who progressed that far six times in the European Cup and seven since the rebranding.
Out of their previous 12 semi-final showdowns, Milan have impressively managed to progress from 10 of them, doing so five times in the European Cup and a further five during their Champions League heyday.
In fact, the only time Milan lost a European Cup semi-final was in the inaugural edition of the tournament in 1955-56, where they succumbed to a 5-4 aggregate defeat to eventual winners Real Madrid.
The Rossoneri subsequently reached the final four in the 1957-58, 1962-63, 1968-69, 1988-89 and 1989-90 seasons, prevailing in all five of them and going all the way to European Cup glory in the latter four competitions.
© Reuters
Continuing their European dominance in the early days of the Champions League, Milan were semi-finalists three seasons running between 1993 and 1995, winning all three of them and ultimately defeating Ajax in the 1994 final.
Aggregate victories in the 2003 and 2005 semi-finals saw Milan stretch their triumphant streak at that stage of the competition to 10, but that magnificent pattern was ended in 2006, as they came unstuck in a 1-0 loss to Barcelona over two legs.
Remarkably, that narrow defeat represents Milan's one loss from six Champions League semi-final home matches so far, and the Ludovic Giuly goal that ended up proving decisive is the only strike that Milan have ever conceded at this stage of the tournament on the San Siro soil.
Milan reverted to type to reach and win the 2007 final, and while a prolonged absence from the Champions League semi-finals would soon follow for a declining Rossoneri, channelling the spirits of semi-final teams gone by would be an ideal first step towards success on Wednesday.
Read more on AC Milan vs Inter Milan
- Click here to read our full preview for AC Milan vs Inter Milan
- How AC Milan could line up against Inter Milan
- Champions League: AC Milan vs. Inter Milan head-to-head record
- Combined XI: AC Milan vs. Inter Milan
- Champions League: AC Milan's road to the semi-finals
Ben Knapton
