After the disappointing end to the league stage of Champions League, Milan travel to the Netherlands to take on Feyenoord for the 1st leg of the knockouts Round of 32. Normally there wouldn’t be a whole lot that linked these two clubs but recent transfer history has changed that. And when I say recent, I mean RECENT.
LAST FIVE
FEYENOORD: WLLLW
MILAN: WWDLW
FORMATIONS
FEYENOORD (4-3-3): Wellenreuther; Read, Beelen, Hancko, Smal; Moder, Milambo, Timber (C); Hadj Moussa, Ueda, Paixão
MILAN (4-2-3-1): Maignan (C); Walker, Thiaw, Pavlovic, Hernández; Fofana, Reijnders; Pulisic, Felix, Leão; Gimenez
TIME/LOCATION
TIME: 3pm EST/8pm GMT
PLACE: Stadion Feijenoord, Rotterdam, Netherlands
WHERE TO WATCH:
Paramount + has your Champions League action in the US. Check your local listings.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR:
FEYENOORD
FEYENOORD
The big headline for both teams is the January 2025 transfer of Santiago Giménez from Feyenoord to Milan. The big #9 has been a Milan fan since his youth and he jumped at the opportunity to move to the club.
This transfer is strange mostly from the perspective that, up until this season, Champions League kept players cup-tied if they moved between teams in the competition. So this is likely the first time in Champions League history we’ve ever seen a player switch clubs right before the clubs played each other in the competition. It certainly makes for an awkward homecoming for Giménez today although by all accounts both Feyenoord and the fans don’t appear to have any ill-will towards the player. We will of course find out.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
ATTACK
The Feyenoord attack still has some teeth even with the departure of Giménez. The Eredivisie side is second in scoring in the Dutch league, only behind Ajax, and we can expect attacking midfielder ANTONI MILAMBO and winger IGOR PAIXÃO to lead the attack. Milambo is Feyenoord’s highest rated player in Champions League but the Dutch side will miss midfielder IN-BEOM HWANG’s offensive contributions, as he’s out with an injury. Feyenoord also get offensive production from their CBs so set pieces will be key for them and something for Milan to watch out for in this game.
DEFENSE
CBs THOMAS BEELEN and DAVID HANCKO are the stalwarts of the defense. The fullbacks don’t have a lot of offensive contributions so expect a more conservative backline overall with the fullbacks not getting too far forward.
MILAN
MILAN
Conceição comes out of the gates with what I think is arguably their strongest lineup, strongest for sure in the attacking phase. On defense, Tomori is sitting (pleasing many of you I’m sure) and Thiaw replaces him in the starting lineup next to Pavlovic. Maybe Conceição is upset at Tomori for the red card last match or maybe Conceição is worried about dead ball situations and the fact that the Feyenoord CBs appear to contribute regularly on offense (as mentioned above).
Offensively though, aye mama! We’re going to get our first extended run of Milan’s Fab Four of Pulisic, João Felix, Leão, and Giménez, in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Felix will be central, flanked by Pulisic and Leão, and Giménez up top. I’m really excited about all of this for a whole bunch of reasons but especially the potential for fireworks.
Oddly, while I think all 4 of them will benefit from each other, I’m equally as excited for Reijnders to be back in the double-pivot. He excels as a box-to-box midfielder and he’s really upped his game offensively this season. If Conceição is aggressive and tells Reijnders to make aggressive forward runs, then I think he can really stand to benefit from all the firepower up front. With the defense needing to pay close attention to all 4 attacking players, Reijnders is going to have plenty of opportunities to make runs unmarked or draw attention and pull defenders off of the others. Did I mention this is a homecoming of sorts for the Dutchman? He didn’t play for Feyenoord (played for AZ Alkmaar) but he’s returning to his home country and I’m sure he’ll be motivated to impress.
Overall, if the team stays on the front foot then Feyenoord will likely stay back in a low block for much of the game, so here’s where we hope the new players can help us break through this type of defense and game.
PREDICTION TIME
Unless something truly strange happens, everything falls in Milan’s favor. If Feyenoord play open, it’s going to be a bloodbath for them. If they pack it in, which I’m expecting them to do even if they come out trying to grab an early goal, then a Milan break through might take a little bit of time. But once it does, and Feyenoord unpacks, then Milan could be off to the races. So I’m expecting a multi-goal win, something like 2-0 or 3-1.
Michael Lisi says: Leão goal. Pulisic to score or assist. We win. Mark it baby!!!
Let’s try to effectively kill this tie today with a big win.
Forza Milan
gillis