Borussia Dortmund defeated AC Milan 3-1 on Tuesday to proceed to the Champions League knockout stage. One of the team’s players stated that AC Milan’s chances of making it farther were now only “2–3%.”
Olivier Giroud’s own penalty save for Milan was followed by Marco Reus’ early goal from the spot for Dortmund. The visitors’ goals from Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and substitute Karim Adeyemi earned them the victory they needed to secure their place in the round of 16. Samuel Chukwueze tied the score at the end of the first half.
The Dortmund coach Edin Terzic remarked, “The lads are clearly exhausted after this match but they are very happy, happy that we are through already, with a match to spare.” “We all recall that this was referred to as the group of death when the draw was made.”
Dortmund leads Group F and leads Paris Saint-Germain by three points after the French team’s stoppage-time penalty allowed them to salvage a 1-1 draw against Newcastle United at home.
Newcastle and seven-time winner Milan, which advanced to the semifinals the previous year, are two points behind PSG. When PSG visits Dortmund in the last round of matches, they square off at St. James’ Park.
“At Newcastle, we’ll give it our all to try and win the game. Italian broadcaster Mediaset spoke with Milan midfielder Yacine Adli, “I’d say we have about a 2-3% chance of qualifying.” “We’ll exert every effort and hope for a favorable outcome for Dortmund.”
Dortmund will be keen to lead the group even though it has already qualified in order to help the squad avoid some of the best teams in the round of sixteen.
The Rossoneri would have been in a stronger position if Giroud had converted a penalty in the sixth minute, after Nico Schlotterbeck charged down Chukwueze’s shot with his arm, but the Frenchman’s spot kick was weak and easily saved by Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel. It was only the third time Giroud had failed to score a penalty in 35 attempts. “We don’t want to make any distinction between different matches, we play them all to win, we don’t want to gift anything to PSG, Newcastle or Milan,” Terzic said. “Moreover, 80,000 fans will be coming to the stadium and the match will make the difference in who we can face when the draw is made, so we will be fully motivated.”
Instead, Dortmund took the lead four minutes later through Reus after Davide Calabria had fouled Bynoe-Gittens. Dortmund seemed content to sit back, defend its lead, and attempt to punish Milan on the counterattack, which it nearly did in the 28th minute when Julian Ryerson’s effort was blocked by Christian Pulisic. Milan was having trouble breaking through the yellow wall and needed a special moment, which arrived eight minutes before halftime when Chukwueze, filling in for the injured Rafael Leao, weaved his way into the penalty area from the right, past two players, and then put an angled drive into the far bottom corner for his first goal for the Rossoneri.
That seemed to instill confidence in Milan, and it nearly turned the game around at the end when Pulisic floated a lovely cross to the back post but Calabria’s header flashed across the face of goal. Shortly after the break, Pulisic went close to scoring a spectacular goal, against his former club, but a defender blocked his overhead kick. In the 59th, Dortmund took the lead again through a combination of Niclas Füllkrug and Marcel Sabitzer, who set up English teenager Bynoe-Gittens, who fired into the bottom left corner.
After 10 minutes, the German team had virtually secured the victory and a spot in the next round. Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan blocked Adeyemi’s strong shot, but it still crossed the line. In the closing moments, both teams also struck the woodwork.
