Dortmund see off Milan to reach Champions League knockouts

AC Milan’s Nigerian midfielder #21 Samuel Chukwueze controls the ball during the UEFA Champions League Group F football match between AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund at the San Siro stadium in Milan on November 28, 2023. (Photo by Marco BERTORELLO / AFP)

Borussia Dortmund secured their spot in the last 16 of the Champions League on Tuesday with a 3-1 win at AC Milan, who are staring early elimination in the face.

Marco Reus’ early penalty and second-half strikes from English teenager Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and Karim Adeyemi secured passage into the next round with a match to spare for Dortmund.

Dortmund have been criticised for their domestic form but are top of Group F on 10 points thanks to their third straight win in the competition, which came against a Milan team off-form and riddled with injuries.

Milan, whose returning striker Olivier Giroud failed to net an early penalty, reached the semi-finals last season but sit bottom of the group on five points and have a job on their hands to progress.

However, the tight nature of the group and Newcastle’s draw at Paris Saint-Germain has left the door ajar for the hosts, who equalised through Samuel Chukwueze.

Milan are two points behind second-placed PSG and will make the draw for the knockout rounds if they win at Newcastle and the French champions lose at Dortmund in next month’s final round of matches.

The match got off to a frantic start and Milan could have been ahead almost straight from the kick-off when a flashed low cross missed both Chukwueze and Olivier Giroud.

France striker Giroud then wasted the perfect chance from the penalty spot in the seventh minute after Nico Schlotterbeck clumsily handled a Chukwueze shot.

And Reus punished the hosts by showing how Giroud should