Seeking a third straight Champions League win, Italian giants AC Milan will meet struggling Slovan Bratislava at Stadion Tehelne Pole on Tuesday evening.
While Milan toppled reigning champions Real Madrid last time out, their hosts have yet to pick up a point in the new league phase, which has reached its halfway stage.
Match preview
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Milan made a slow start to their latest Champions League campaign - losing to Liverpool and then Bayer Leverkusen - but they have since raised their game, most notably leaving Spain with all three points after a memorable night at the Bernabeu.
Defying their mixed domestic form, the Rossoneri stunned Real Madrid with a merited 3-1 win, in which Alvaro Morata scored the second goal against his former club.
The seven-time European champions had previously beaten Club Brugge by the same scoreline at San Siro, so they sit inside the playoff places with four games to go - and just three points shy of the all-important top eight.
In the course of those two wins, Milan managed to score as many goals as throughout their previous 10 matches in Europe's top club competition, and such inconsistency was neatly summed up by two recent outings in Serie A.
On Saturday, Paulo Fonseca's side played out a dull 0-0 draw versus Juventus - producing just one shot on target - while just before the international break they led twice in Cagliari but ultimately had to settle for a 3-3 draw.
The Rossoneri have won only eight of their last 25 games all told, and a tally of 19 points after 12 league games is by far their worst over the past five seasons - already, any hopes of silverware may be restricted to knockout competition.
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Ahead of Tuesday's contest, Slovan Bratislava have met Milan once before, losing both legs of a qualifying tie for the first edition of the Champions League back in 1992.
On that occasion, a whole host of illustrious players made their mark, as Paolo Maldini scored the only goal in Slovakia before Zvonimir Boban, Frank Rijkaard, Marco Simone and Jean-Pierre Papin all found the net at San Siro - that star-studded Milan side went on to reach the final.
Some 32 years later, Slovan are finally making their debut in the Champions League proper, but it has been a chastening experience so far: they are one of five teams yet to win a single point.
Following a 4-1 home defeat to Dinamo Zagreb at the start of November, Vladimir Weiss's side are stuck to the foot of the standings, with the worst goal difference (-13) and only two goals scored.
Hopes of a resurgence during the second half of their league-phase campaign seem slim, as after hosting Milan they must still meet Atletico Madrid and free-scoring Bayern Munich before the end of the year.
While Slovan have lost all four of their Champions League fixtures since coming through qualifying, they continue to dominate on the domestic front, having suffered just one defeat in 17 matches this season, winning 14.
Most recently, the Sky Blues - who claimed their 30th league title last term - returned from the international break with a 1-1 draw against Kosice, but now they face a significant step-up in class.
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Team News
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As Matteo Gabbia started on Saturday evening, following a spell on the sidelines with a thigh injury, Milan will have almost all of their squad available in Bratislava.
Only long-term absentees Ismael Bennacer and Alessandro Florenzi are definitely unavailable to under-fire boss Paulo Fonseca, though Luka Jovic is still struggling with a groin issue.
In the latter's absence Alvaro Morata, Tammy Abraham and 16-year-old rising star Francesco Camarda have all featured in the lone striker's role, but Morata must serve a suspension on Tuesday.
He should supported by Rafael Leao, who starred in Madrid and has completed more dribbles than any other player in the Champions League this season (20), while dynamic midfielder Tijjani Reijnders is Milan's top scorer in the league phase with three goals.
Meanwhile, Slovan's main threat will come from Tigran Barseghyan - who has registered 11 goals in 14 1.Liga games this term, including the equaliser at Kosice - and David Strelec.
The latter has scored five in his last five club appearances and also netted the only goal as Slovakia defeated Estonia in the UEFA Nations League last week.
The hosts have been boosted by the return of two key players following the international break, as Austrian defender Kevin Wimmer has recovered from a muscular injury and veteran midfielder Juraj Kucka - who was on Milan's books between 2015 and 2017 - played the second half on Friday.
Slovan Bratislava possible starting lineup:
Takac; Bajric, Kashia, Wimmer; Blackman, Kucka, Savvidis, Mak; Barseghyan, Metsoko; Strelec
AC Milan possible starting lineup:
Maignan; Emerson, Thiaw, Tomori, Hernandez; Fofana, Reijnders; Chukwueze, Pulisic, Leao; Abraham
We say: Slovan Bratislava 0-2 AC Milan
Milan may be hit-and-miss in Serie A, but they are more than capable of securing maximum points in Bratislava. Due to Slovan's defensive flaws, the Rossoneri can boost their bid for automatic qualification to the last 16.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Jonathan O'Shea
