AC Milan vs Liverpool - LIVE!

Liverpool recovered from a disastrous start to beat AC Milan and make a perfect start to their Champions League campaign with a 3-1 win at the San Siro.

Christian Pulisic capitalised on some terrible defending to put the visitors in front inside three minutes, further adding to a red-hot atmosphere and asking more questions of Liverpool, three days on from their surprise defeat to Nottingham Forest. The answers were emphatic, as Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk powered in headers from set-pieces before half-time to turn the match around, and Dominik Szoboszlai then gave Liverpool real control in the second-half.

It was a perfect start for the Reds as they attempt to finish the new league phase of the competition in the top eight, and in doing so avoid an extra knockout tie after Christmas. Liverpool next host Bologna in the Champions League, before tricky tests against RB Leipzig, Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen.

AC Milan vs Liverpool latest news

• GOAL! Szoboszlai extends advantage

• GOAL! Van Dijk puts Liverpool in front

• GOAL! Konate heads home equaliser

• WOODWORK! Salah denied by the bar

• GOAL! Pulisic fires Milan into early lead

FT: AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

22:00 , Matt Verri

Job done for Liverpool!

A perfect start to their Champions League campaign, really impressive after that dreadful start.

Arne Slot will have very much enjoyed his 46th birthday.

AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

21:59 , Matt Verri

90+6 mins: Off the post!

Leao from a tight angle, Alisson tips it onto the woodwork. On we go...

AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

21:55 , Matt Verri

90+2 mins: Six minutes added on.

Enough time for a Chiesa debut. He’s on to replace Salah, while Mac Allister is off for Endo.

AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

21:51 , Matt Verri

88 mins: Gabbia gets up well from a Milan corner, header not the best though and Alisson can watch it wide.

Royal then has a go at volleying Nunez’s head off. Absurdly high boot from the goal kick, impressed he can even get his foot that high.

Does well to avoid a card.

AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

21:48 , Matt Verri

85 mins: Milan’s players very much now operating a shoot on sight policy.

Hernandez tries his luck from 25 yards out, decent strike but it whistles past the far post. Think Alisson had it covered.

AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

21:45 , Matt Verri

82 mins: Konate the latest player into the book, lunge from the centre-back and he can’t really complain about that.

Liverpool doing their best to just slow things down on the ball, ticking the seconds away.

Wouldn’t say Milan are flying forward to press them.

AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

21:42 , Matt Verri

79 mins: Big smirk from Alexander-Arnold, who is doing his best to wind everyone up as he slowly strolls off.

Fofana tries to ‘help’ him along, Alexander-Arnold slows down even more.

Eventually he’s off the pitch, replaced by Gomez.

AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

21:40 , Matt Verri

77 mins: More goals in this for Liverpool.

Salah slides in Nunez, he’s got Tomori for pace and Diaz is completely free in the middle, waiting for it to be squared.

Tomori does well, though. Closes down Nunez and stops the ball coming across.

AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

21:37 , Matt Verri

75 mins: Corner Liverpool, as Hernandez sends the ball straight out under pressure from Salah.

Tsimikas swings it in, again Van Dijk is allowed to rise highest but this time he can’t get the header on target.

AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

21:35 , Matt Verri

72 mins: Alisson charges off his line and makes a mess of clearing the danger, instead laying it off for Abraham, who has come off the bench.

He tries to find the empty net, but Konate is back to cover. Wasn’t on target anyway.

Leao then rushes to the byline, wins a corner for Milan. More like it.

AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool

21:31 , Matt Verri

68 mins: Two Liverpool changes.

Gakpo and Jota are off, Diaz and Nunez introduced for the final 20 minutes or so.

GOAL! AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool | Dominik Szoboszlai 67'

21:29 , Matt Verri

And there it is!

Liverpool take a big step towards wrapping up victory.

Gakpo again down the left, drives into the box and cuts it back. Bit awkward for Szoboszlai, but he does really well to guide it into the corner.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

21:27 , Matt Verri

64 mins: It’s all very scrappy. Liverpool need the third goal they deserve to kill this match off.

Szoboszlai in behind, can’t squeeze in a finish from a tight angle. Played ball to Tsimikas, who drags an effort wide of the far post.

Liverpool really could have scored five or six goals.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

21:24 , Matt Verri

61 mins: Hernandez charges forward, goes over, appeals waved away.

Crowd are furious, Gakpo then goes up the other end and seems to have been shoved over. Again the referee waves play on.

Anything and everything allowed, all of a sudden.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

21:23 , Matt Verri

60 mins: Handball against Morata in the end, for grabbing the ball as he appealed.

And a yellow card for Milan boss Fonseca, who offered his rather animated opinion on that decision from the touchline.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

21:22 , Matt Verri

59 mins: Morata is having a good go at throwing himself to ground at every opportunity.

Ball clipped into the box, great touch from the striker to bring it down and then he topples over. Did Gakpo bring him down?

Hmmm, not really. Bit of contact but not enough.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

21:19 , Matt Verri

56 mins: Jota pokes a ball through to Tsimikas in the box, he’s completely free.

Lines it up on his right foot, expectations low for this... and he sends it five miles wide, and seven miles high.

He’s left-footed, believe it or not.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

21:16 , Matt Verri

53 mins: Bit of a pointless challenge from Mac Allister, catches Fofana late after the ball had already been played away. Yellow card for the midfielder.

Not much flow to the game since the break, that long stoppage for Maignan hasn’t helped.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

21:14 , Matt Verri

51 mins: Maignan still doesn’t look like he wants to come off.

Eventually he gets up, shirt over his face as he trudges along the touchline. Torriani is on.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

21:13 , Matt Verri

50 mins: At long last. Torriani is warming up, the 19-year-old looks like he’ll be coming on.

Maignan getting his knee sprayed... think we’re beyond the stage where that’s going to help.

Frenchman wiping up some blood from his knee, giving Torriani a bit more time to get ready as he just sits there.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

21:10 , Matt Verri

48 mins: And now we can be sure Maignan really can’t move.

He goes really well to rush out and smother Jota’s effort, gets clattered in the knee in the process. Just what he needed.

That will surely be the end of his night...

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

21:09 , Matt Verri

47 mins: Maignan is not moving well at all. Not sure why he’s come out at the start of this half.

Commentators saying two alternatives on the bench are very inexperienced... I imagine they also have two functioning legs.

Back underway!

21:08 , Matt Verri

Up and running in the second-half.

Perfect start for Milan

21:02 , Matt Verri

It had been an impressive start from Milan.

Helped by Tsimikas deciding to go charging up the pitch, Pulisic raced away and finished well beyond Alisson.

That feels a long time ago...

How Van Dijk gave Liverpool the lead

20:55 , Matt Verri

Here is that Van Dijk header.

The defending is not great - I’d suggest you probably want to be keeping a close eye on the Liverpool captain in the box.

HT: AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

20:51

That’ll do it for the first-half at the San Siro.

Rapid start from Milan, they took the lead inside three minutes through Christian Pulisic.

But that was as good as it got. Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk have got Liverpool in front, and Milan can be happy they’re only one behind.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

20:49 , Matt Verri

45+4 mins: Gakpo works the space for the shot, catches it well and Maignan turns it behind for a corner. Trouble for Milan...

Maignan with a bit of a slap, but it does the job.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

20:48 , Matt Verri

45+2 mins: Brilliant from Leao, skips away from the challenges.

Keeps going by himself, goes down as Konate starts to lean on him... referee not interested.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

20:46 , Matt Verri

45 mins: Five minutes added on.

Roughly five more than Milan want. They have offered nothing since Liverpool equalised.

AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool

20:43

43 mins: Home fans getting pretty fed up with what they’re seeing.

Space for Tsimikas to get a shot away, didn’t ever look like troubling Maignan.

GOAL! AC Milan 1-2 Liverpool | Virgil van Dijk 41'

20:42 , Matt Verri

Liverpool do take the lead!

Would be fair to say Milan have absolutely no idea how to defend corners. Tottenham would be proud.

Tsimikas swings it in, Van Dijk allowed to get up a few yards out and nod home. Maignan didn’t move.

AC Milan 1-1 Liverpool

20:41 , Matt Verri

41 mins: Milan could have conceded four or five in this half. Will do very well to get to half-time with it still level.

Jota leads the counter, Calabria knows he can’t bring him down.

Ball clipped through to Salah, who works it onto his left foot and gets the shot away. Heading for the bottom corner, but Maignan gets down well.

AC Milan 1-1 Liverpool

20:40 , Matt Verri

39 mins: Gakpo decides to test how fit Maignan is, tries his luck from miles out.

Straight at the AC Milan goalkeeper, who would have had a decent chance of saving that with his eyes closed.

AC Milan 1-1 Liverpool

20:38 , Matt Verri

37 mins: Maignan lumps the ball forward and has gone down again. Holding his left ankle this time.

Both sets of managers call their players over for a bit of a a team talk. Looks like Maignan is again going carry on.

AC Milan 1-1 Liverpool

20:35 , Matt Verri

34 mins: Milan can barely get out of their half. Liverpool win a corner, up come Konate and Van Dijk again. Both standing right on Maignan.

Not a great ball in from Alexander-Arnold, Gakpo unable to flick it on at the near post.

AC Milan 1-1 Liverpool

20:32 , Matt Verri

32 mins: Fofana into the book, can only drag Salah back to try and halt the counter.

It’s a deep defensive line from Milan for this free-kick. Alexander-Arnold again standing over it.

From 35 yards out he goes for goal, ball doesn’t get off the ground... woeful.

AC Milan 1-1 Liverpool

20:30 , Matt Verri

29 mins: Off the bar... again!

It’s all Liverpool now and Salah is inches away from getting himself on the scoresheet.

Gakpo drives into the box, Maignan parries his shot out to Salah. He swivels sharply, great effort but once more it smacks off the underside of the bar and away to safety.

AC Milan 1-1 Liverpool

20:27 , Matt Verri

26 mins: Should be 2-1! Massive chance for Liverpool

Mac Allister slides a great pass through to Jota, he surely has to square it for Gakpo... goes by himself and it’s a poor effort.

Doesn’t even hit the target in the end. Gakpo furious, he would have had a tap-in.

GOAL! AC Milan 1-1 Liverpool | Ibrahima Konate 23'

20:24 , Matt Verri

And it proves costly!

Free-kick clipped in from out wide, Konate rises highest and nods past Maignan.

Great delivery from Alexander-Arnold, Maignan came but got nowhere near it.

AC Milan 1-0 Liverpool

20:23 , Matt Verri

22 mins: Calabria absolutely flies in on Gakpo, thinks he got the ball... the referee does not. Yellow card.

Gakpo just about got his body in the way, Calabria came threw him. Not sure there was any need for him to go charging in like that.

AC Milan 1-0 Liverpool

20:20 , Matt Verri

20 mins: Gakpo plays Tsimikas in down the left, stands up a cross to the back post but it has too much on it.

Few groans from the home fans as Milan turn back, rather than breaking through Leao.

And that chorus is swiftly added to when the ball is played straight to Gravenberch.

AC Milan 1-0 Liverpool

20:17 , Matt Verri

17 mins: Off the bar!

Nearly stunning from Salah. Jota slides the ball through to him, on his right foot from a fairly tight angle... lashes a strike off the underside of the bar.

Maignan beaten, so unlucky.

AC Milan 1-0 Liverpool

20:15 , Matt Verri

14 mins: Milan are finding it pretty easy to play through the Liverpool midfield. So much space for them.

Reijnders can work the ball onto his left foot in the box, shot is charged down. Mac Allister then wins a free-kick to ease the pressure.

AC Milan 1-0 Liverpool

20:11 , Matt Verri

11 mins: Salah fires a ball into the box, Jota with a decent turn but the touch is too heavy and Tomori can see it out for a goal-kick.

Liverpool seeing a lot of the ball, but there are a lot of bodies for them to play through.

AC Milan 1-0 Liverpool

20:08 , Matt Verri

8 mins: Back underway, Maignan fine to continue for now.

Milan are letting the Liverpool defenders have the ball, but the likes of Leao and Pulisic are ready to pounce as soon as it’s turned over.

Liverpool could do with Tsimikas being somewhere within 30 yards of where he’s needed.

AC Milan 1-0 Liverpool

20:06 , Matt Verri

6 mins: Delay in getting the match up and running again. Maignan has gone down in goal for Milan.

He’s needing a fair bit of treatment, trying to stretch out his right leg.

GOAL! AC Milan 1-0 Liverpool | Christian Pulisic 3'

20:04 , Matt Verri

San Siro erupts!

That was so, so easy for Milan.

Morata plays the ball through to Pulisic, and Liverpool have absolutely nobody even close to him.

Tsimikas nowhere to be seen, Pulisic strolls into the box and fires into the far corner.

AC Milan 0-0 Liverpool

20:03 , Matt Verri

2 mins: Concern for Liverpool as Leao plays the ball in behind, Reijnders has made a great run.

Plays the ball across the face of goal, Van Dijk has to hack it away under his own bar.

And then the offside flag goes up.

KICK-OFF!

20:00 , Matt Verri

We’re up and running!

19:58 , Matt Verri

Handshakes done, Champions League anthem done, awkward handing over of those flag things by the captains... done.

Time to get underway.

Here we go...

19:55 , Matt Verri

Teams are in the tunnel at the San Siro, kick-off only a few minutes away.

Clarence Seedorf doing some punditry work inside the tunnel, slightly interrupted by the fact everyone wants to high five him.

Big names in attendance!

19:51 , Matt Verri

Kaka has been strolling around the San Siro pitch ahead of kick-off, doing his bit to get the crowd going.

It’s already a red-hot atmosphere - Liverpool’s job to calm things down as quickly as they can.

Aston Villa make perfect start

19:46 , Matt Verri

Two down, 16 to go!

We’ve had our first couple of matches in this season’s Champions League. Aston Villa have cruised to a 3-0 win away to Young Boys, big result for Unai Emery’s side.

And Juventus have beaten PSV, a 3-1 win to get them up and running.

Plenty of goals so far... more of that would be ideal.

Morata: I can't wait to play for Milan in Champions League

19:37 , Matt Verri

Alvaro Morata leads the line for Milan tonight, and he spoke yesterday about the challenge facing his side against Liverpool.

This is his first Champions League appearance in a Milan shirt.

In the building!

19:27 , Matt Verri

For those of you who enjoy footballers looking very stern as they walk towards a dressing room, you’re in luck...

Tough set for Liverpool

19:22 , Matt Verri

Eight matches for each team in the league phase of the competition, which will go on until after Christmas.

Liverpool are at home to Bologna in their next Champions League match, before travelling to face RB Leipzig and then hosting Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen.

It is then a blockbuster showdown with Real Madrid at Anfield in late November, followed by a trip to take on Girona.

In January, Liverpool face Lille on home soil, followed by their final match on the road against PSV.

Not the easiest of draws...

Fonseca: Liverpool will punish mistakes

19:13 , Matt Verri

AC Milan boss Paulo Fonseca has been full of praise for Liverpool in the build-up to this match, believing the Reds are one of the best sides in the competition.

“They are a great team - one of the strongest in Europe at the moment,” Fonseca said at his pre-match press conference.

“They have a very strong positional game and individual talents. We will need to be defensively perfect to win.

"In the Champions League, against teams like this, you cannot make mistakes. If we make one mistake, then they will score. We will need to be a complete team in defence to attack them with stability.

"For me, at this moment, they are one of the strongest teams in Europe."

Elsewhere in the Champions League

19:06 , Matt Verri

So far, so good for Premier League sides.

Aston Villa are making their return to the Champions League tonight, away to Young Boys in their opening match.

Unai Emery’s side are 2-0 up after an hour, well in control of that match.

The hosts have done their best to help with some very generous defending...

Morata gets the nod

19:02

It’s Alvaro Morata leading the line for AC Milan tonight.

That means Tammy Abraham has to settle for a place on the bench, along with former Tottenham right-back Emerson Royal.

Christian Pulisic and Rafael Leao will be providing the pace out wide - can they get at Trent Alexander-Arnold and Kostas Tsimikas?

AC Milan team news

18:53 , Matt Verri

Starting XI: Maignan, Calabria, Tomori, Pavlovic, Hernandez, Loftus-Cheek, Fofana, Reijnders, Pulisic, Morata, Leao

Subs: Nava, Torriani, Okafor, Zeroli, Chukwueze, Royal, Bartesaghi, Terracciano, Gabbia, Abraham, Musah

Slot makes changes

18:51

It has been an unchanged Liverpool side for the last three matches, but Arne Slot does tweak his lineup tonight.

Kostas Tsimikas comes in at left-back to replace Andy Robertson, while Cody Gakpo gets the nod over Luis Diaz in the front three.

Federico Chiesa makes the bench, who could be handed a debut tonight.

Liverpool team news

18:46 , Matt Verri

Starting XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Szoboszlai; Salah, Jota, Gakpo.

Subs: Kelleher, Jaros, Gomez, Endo, Diaz, Nunez, Chiesa, Jones, Robertson, Quansah, Morton, Bradley.

Alisson hits out at busier schedule

18:34 , Matt Verri

Alisson Becker has called on football's authorities to speak to players about their welfare as the Reds prepare to start an expanded Champions League campaign.

UEFA's elite club-level competition now involves 36 teams, which means an extra two matches in a group stage which now does not finish until the end of January as opposed to mid-December.

The complaint about a packed calendar was usually one made loudly by former Reds boss Jurgen Klopp but Alisson has taken up the mantle and said the players are "tired" of the ever-increasing schedule.

“For the supporters, it is amazing. More games, more bigger games, big teams against each other," he said ahead of the clash against AC Milan in the San Siro.

"For us players as well, it is good that you are going to play against the best in Europe - and it is always a good idea to add some games to the calendar that is not busy... I am being ironic a little bit.

“Sometimes nobody asks the players what they think about adding more games so maybe our opinion does not matter.

"But everybody knows what we think about having more games. Everybody is tired of that.”

Stage is set!

18:27 , Matt Verri

Always a special night in Milan...

New Champions League format explained

18:16 , Matt Verri

Instead of 32 teams being divided into eight groups of four, all 36 teams in this year’s competition will form a single opening league table.

Each of the teams will play four games at home and four away. The eight fixtures a team will play in total are two games more than teams played in last year’s edition, and will be against eight different sides.

After the initial phase, the top eight teams in the league table will advance directly into the last-16.

Teams who finish between ninth and 24th will enter a play-off round, while teams who finish 25th and below will be eliminated from European competition altogether - with no consolation route into the Europa League on offer.

Why is AC Milan vs Liverpool not on TNT Sports?

18:08 , Matt Verri

Instead of TNT Sports showing all Champions League games in the UK as in recent years, Amazon Prime Video will now be broadcasting every ‘top Tuesday match’.

That starts with Milan vs Liverpool tonight, with coverage getting underway at 6:30pm BST.

Broadcasting rights will be shared between TNT Sports (previously BT Sport) and Amazon Prime Video between 2024 and 2027, with the BBC also showing a brand new highlights show at 10:40pm BST every Wednesday night.

TNT Sports still keep the majority of the games with 533 of the 550 total fixtures, but Amazon now get the first pick of 17 games on Tuesdays right up until the semi-finals.

Other upcoming matches on Prime Video include Arsenal vs Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal vs Shakhtar Donetsk, Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen and Manchester City vs Feyenoord.

Standard Sport prediction

18:01 , Matt Verri

Paulo Fonseca has struggled during the early stages of his tenure at Milan, even if there was a big win over Venezia last time out.

That Forest loss was frustrating for Liverpool, but there is every chance they bounce straight back with a statement display.

Liverpool to win, 2-0.

Liverpool team news

17:52 , Matt Verri

Federico Chiesa could make his Liverpool debut tonight.

The summer signing failed to make the squad for Saturday's home loss to Nottingham Forest despite training with his new team during the international break.

Chiesa has travelled to Italy for the match, with Arne Slot confirming at his pre-match press conference that the 26-year-old could feature off the bench.

The Liverpool boss said: “Too early to play 90 mins but hopefully some minutes in the upcoming fixtures."

The Dutchman has a decision to make in attack with who partners Mohamed Salah, after Diogo Jota, Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo all failed to make an impact against Forest.

Nunez and Gakpo has been given bit-part roles so far this season, so both could be given an opportunity from the off at San Siro given the tight turnaround between games.

Predicted Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Endo, Gravenberch; Salah, Szoboszlai, Gakpo; Nunez

AC Milan team news

17:46 , Matt Verri

Ismael Bennacer, Alessandro Florenzi and Marco Sportiello are all missing for the hosts. Malick Thiaw is a doubt, along with Davide Calabria.

Tammy Abraham is expected to lead the line, with Christian Pulisic, Emerson Royal and Ruben Loftus-Cheek all hoping to keep their places in the starting lineup too.

How to watch AC Milan vs Liverpool

17:36 , Matt Verri

TV channel: The game will be broadcast on Amazon Prime. Coverage starts at 7pm BST ahead of an 8pm kick-off at San Siro.

Live stream: Subscribers will be able to watch via the Amazon Prime website and app.

LIVE coverage: Follow all the action right here with us!

Good evening!

17:30 , Matt Verri

Hello and welcome to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of AC Milan vs Liverpool!

It’s a huge start to this season’s Champions League, with a heavyweight encounter on the opening night of the competition.

Sure the news has reached you all by now that it’s a new format this season. One big league, 36 teams in it, each club plays eight matches.

More on that later, as we bring you all the latest build-up and team news ahead of kick-off, which comes at 8pm BST from the San Siro. Stay with us!