Milan make winning return to Champions League knockout stage by beating Tottenham

MILAN: An early goal was enough for troubled AC Milan to edge Tottenham 1-0 on Tuesday in their first Champions League knockout match in nearly 10 years.

Brahim Diaz netted in the seventh minute to give Milan a slender advantage to take to London when the teams meet again in the second leg of the round of 16 on March 8.

It was a miserable return to San Siro for Tottenham manager Antonio Conte, who endured only his second loss against Milan in 15 matches as coach. The former Inter Milan and Juventus coach had engineered 10 victories over the Rossoneri.

It was also Tottenham’s second straight defeat since Conte returned to the dugout following gallbladder surgery. Spurs lost 4-1 at Leicester in the Premier League on Saturday.

For Milan, it is a further sign that things might be turning around after a tough run. Milan was winless in its past seven matches, including losing its previous four matches, before Friday’s 1-0 win over Torino.

The match at San Siro was Milan’s first in the Champions League knockout stage since 2014.

And the Rossoneri got their return off to the perfect start. Theo Hernandez saw his shot parried by Fraser Forster and Tottenham’s goalkeeper then did brilliantly to claw away Diaz’s effort from the rebound but the Milan midfielder bundled in from point-blank range on the second attempt.