Brahim Diaz’s early goal condemned Tottenham to a 1-0 loss against AC Milan in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie but Antonio Conte feels their fans can roar them on to victory back in north London.
Former Manchester City winger Diaz bundled home from close range after seven minutes and Spurs were fortunate not to fall further behind in the closing stages when Milan spurned two glorious headed chances through Charles De Ketelaere and Malick Thiaw.
Instead, Conte will be relieved to return from a hostile San Siro with a deficit of only one goal having been forced to field a central midfield pairing of Oliver Skipp and Pape Sarr due to Rodrigo Bentancur’s injury and the suspension of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.
Skipp and Sarr performed well in difficult circumstances on their full Champions League debuts but, in a largely cagey encounter, Spurs, beaten 4-1 by Leicester in the Premier League on Saturday, struggled to break down the stubborn hosts.
Their personnel issues will continue in the second leg at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with a yellow card to Eric Dier meaning he will miss out through suspension, but the one-goal margin of defeat means the tie is still open for Conte and his players.
“I know the San Siro and I know the difficulty to play with this atmosphere,” said Conte afterwards. “In the second game, we have to play at our stadium and our fans will create the atmosphere to help us overcome the Milan obstacle.”
Conte claimed some of his players struggle to cope with pressure after the 4-1 loss to Leicester and, at a vociferous San Siro, Milan’s early opener seemed to provide further evidence.
The goal came after Theo Hernandez beat Cristian Romero to a long pass on the left and forced a parry from Fraser Forster, who then acrobatically saved Diaz’s follow-up, only for the winger to force the loose ball into the net with a diving header.
But, despite having to work hard to contain the dangerous Rafael Leao, Spurs soon settled into the game following the early goal, causing problems for the hosts with a series of set-piece deliveries, albeit without creating any clear chances in the first half.
The second period began with a let-off for the reckless Romero, who was only booked, with VAR upholding the decision not to send him off, after he went flying into Sandro Tonali as Milan sprang forward on the counter-attack.
Sky Sports
