The need to avoid a first in club history: All the key stats ahead of AC Milan vs. Club Brugge | OneFootball

The Champions League anthem will play at San Siro again tonight as AC Milan take on Club Brugge, and not for the first time in their history.

Milan have actually played the Belgian champions six times in competitive games in their history, winning three of them with one draw and two defeats. The Rossoneri have played 21 times against clubs from Belgium more generally, winning nine of them, drawing nine and losing three.

Our pre-match preview has more insight on the opposition plus the latest team news and the players to watch, while below are the best stats in view of this evening’s contest.

➤ Club Brugge have kept a clean sheet in each of their last two European visits to Milan, drawing 0-0 in the European Cup in October 1990 and winning 1-0 in the UEFA Champions League in October 2003.

➤ After losing each of their last two home games in the competition, AC Milan will be looking to avoid losing three consecutive home outings in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League for the first time in their history.

➤ Club Brugge haven’t lost any of their last four away games in the group/league stage of the UEFA Champions League (W2 D2), keeping a clean sheet in all four matches. Their last such defeat came away to Paris SG back in December 2021 (1-4).

➤ Milan have lost both of their games in the UEFA Champions League this season, losing at home against Liverpool (1-3) and away to Bayer Leverkusen (0-1). Only once previously have they lost their opening three matches of a single Champions League campaign, doing so in 2021-22 under Stefano Pioli.

➤ Club Brugge have kept six clean sheets in their last 10 games in the UEFA Champions League, including one in their 1-0 victory over Sturm Graz last time out. However, they’ve still conceded over a goal per game on average in this run (1.4), having shipped 14 goals across the four games they did concede in.

➤ Milan boss Paulo Fonseca has only won one of his last nine games in the UEFA Champions League as a manager (D3 L5), including defeats in his first two in charge of the Italian side. He’s never lost three in a row in the competition as a coach.

Photo by Rico Brouwer/Soccrates/Getty Images

➤ Each of AC Milan’s last 23 goals in UEFA Champions League home matches have been scored from inside the box, with the last player to net from outside the box being Robinho in February 2012 v Arsenal.

➤ Maxim De Cuyper made 24 line-breaking passes in Club Brugge’s win over Sturm Graz last time out; the most by any full back in a UEFA Champions League game this season.

➤ Against Bayer Leverkusen last time out, Youssouf Fofana created the joint-most chances (3), completed the most dribbles (5) and won the most duels (10) of any player for Milan. The last player to replicate those numbers in a single UEFA Champions League game for the Italian side was Kaká in October 2007 v Shakhtar Donetsk.