Rome (Italy), Feb 15 (IANS): AC Milan registered a morale-boosting victory, as they beat Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16, with Brahim Diaz's early strike proving decisive.
It was Milan's first knockout fixture at the European elites stage since the 2013-2014 season, as they entered the San Siro stadium without Mike Maignan, Ismael Bennacer and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Spurs also had a long list of absentees, as they lost Hugo Lloris and Rodrigo Bentancur due to injury, with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg suspended.
Milan had a poor domestic form since the start of 2023, but made short work of Italian tactician Antonio Conte's Spurs, as they scored the solo goal just seven minutes into the game when Fraser Forster denied Theo Hernandez at the near post and made a save on Diaz's rebound, but could do nothing to the Spaniard's follow-up, a Xinhua report said.
On Tuesday night, the Rossoneri remained firm after going ahead and held onto their 1-0 lead, while Tottenham's trump card Harry Kane was under the constant watch of Simon Kjaer.
The return leg will be held on March 8 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.