AC Milan 1-0 Napoli LIVE! Bennacer goal - Champions League result, match stream and latest updates today

AC Milan beat Napoli for the second time in the space of less than two weeks — and this time with more at stake — as the Rossoneri won 1-0 in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal on Wednesday.

Ismaël Bennacer scored shortly before the end of a first half that Napoli had dominated for long stretches. Both teams also hit the crossbar before Napoli midfielder André-Frank Zambo Anguissa was sent off 16 minutes from time, following two yellow cards in quick succession.

The teams will meet again in Naples next Tuesday with the winner to play either Inter Milan or Benfica in the semifinals.

Milan routed Napoli 4-0 when the two teams met in the Italian league on April 2. But Napoli has a 16-point lead at the top of Serie A.

It was Napoli’s first ever appearance in the quarterfinals and it was without a recognized striker as leading Serie A goalscorer Victor Osimhen and Giovanni Simeone were out injured and coach Luciano Spalletti opted to start Giacomo Raspadori on the bench and play Eljif Elmas in the false nine position.

Nevertheless, the visitors got off to an aggressive start and had four clearcut opportunities in as many minutes.

The best of those was after only 50 seconds as Milan failed to deal with a cross and a horrible Rade Kruni* clearance fell straight to Napoli dangerman Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. But Kruni* atoned for his error by clearing the shot off the line and Mário Rui ballooned the follow-up over.

Milan broke the deadlock five minutes from halftime as Brahim Díaz sped forward from midfield and laid the ball off to the right of the area to Rafael Leão. His attempt at a one-two didn’t quite come off but it came through to Bennacer to fire into the top near corner.

Napoli’s chances of getting back into the match diminished when Anguissa was shown a second yellow card for a high tackle on Theo Hernández four minutes after being booked for a foul on the same Milan defender.

AC Milan vs Napoli latest news

• Full match report

AC Milan 1 - 0 SSC Napoli

Good night

22:17 , Jonathan Gorrie

Thank you for joining Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of AC Milan’s win over Napoli.

Find our match report below!

Milan strike first blow as Napoli live to rue flurry of missed chances

22:00 , Jonathan Gorrie

AC Milan have one foot in the Champions League semi-finals after beating Napoli for the second time in ten days.

With Victor Osimhen out injured, Napoli’s star turn in Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was unable to step up.

Only minutes into the game, the Georgian – who has taken Europe by storm this season – did not put enough on a shot at the back post after Frank-Andre Zambo Anguissa dug out a driven cross that flashed across the face of goal.

The rather tame effort was blocked with relative ease and, even at that early stage, heads appeared to have dropped. While the Serie A leaders bossed most of the boss and peppered Mike Maignan’s goal with speculative shots from range, clear cut chances were few and far between.

Read Jonathan Gorrie’s full match report here!

FT: AC Milan 1-0 Napoli

21:58 , Jonathan Gorrie

Bennacer’s goal puts Milan in command of the Champions league quarter-final as Napoli rue missed chances.

With Anguissa and Kim ruled out of the second leg, the Serie A leaders hae a mountain to climb.

CHANCE FOR NAPOLI!

21:49 , Jonathan Gorrie

85 mins: Brilliant save from Maignan to deny Di Lorenzo.

Another booking!

21:41 , Jonathan Gorrie

76 mins: Minjae goes into the book for a forceful challenge and will now miss the second leg!

RED CARD! Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa ‘73 mins

21:37 , Jonathan Gorrie

73 mins: Anguissa booked twice within the space of a few minutes. Soft but sloppy.

Milan starting to improve

21:29 , Jonathan Gorrie

64 mins: Like in the first-half, Milan ceded possession in the opening stages but have started to grow back into it.

Worrying signs for Napoli.

Napoli penalty claim

21:22 , Jonathan Gorrie

58 mins: Hernandez pushes Lozano down in the box, taking a massive risk.

The referee, however, waves the appeals away.

CHANCE FOR NAPOLI!

21:13 , Jonathan Gorrie

48 mins: Elma’s header almost catches Maignan out but the Frenchman just about recovers to tip it over the bar.

The ‘keeper then catches Zielinski’s header from the resulting corner.

Back underway!

21:08 , Jonathan Gorrie

Can Napoli find a response?

21:03 , Jonathan Gorrie

Difficult to see Napoli coming back if things don’t change

20:53 , Jonathan Gorrie

Aside from the spate of missed chances in the first few moments, the Serie A leaders look so short of ideas.

HT: AC Milan 1-0 Napoli

20:51 , Jonathan Gorrie

If anything, Milan would not have wanted half-time to come when it did.

OFF THE BAR!

20:50 , Jonathan Gorrie

45 mins: Kjaer thunders a header off the bar from a corner.

Crazy to think how in control Napoli were in the opening few minutes.

Do Milan have Napoli’s number?

20:46 , Jonathan Gorrie

43 mins: Napoli just do not look convincing.

Milan a real threat on the counter all evening so far.

GOAL! AC Milan 1-0 Napoli | Ismael Bennacer ‘39

20:42 , Jonathan Gorrie

39 mins: Stunning turn from Diaz has AC Milan on the break and the Spaniard passes to Bennacer to crash one into the net.

AC Milan getting some composure

20:33 , Jonathan Gorrie

30 mins: Taking the sting out of the game, Milan are starting to deny Napoli the ball with which they tore them apart in the opening stages.

CHANCE FOR MILAN!

20:27 , Jonathan Gorrie

24 mins: Leao breaks from deep with a stunning solo run but puts his shot wide! Did all the hard work.

Will Napoli rue their missed chances?

20:20 , Jonathan Gorrie

18 mins: Milan appear to have grown into this of late. Napoli need an extra gear all of a sudden.

CHANCE FOR NAPOLI!

20:13 , Jonathan Gorrie

12 mins: Another top save from Maignan, tipping Zielinksi’s shot from 25 yards out over the bar.

CHANCE FOR NAPOLI!

20:05 , Jonathan Gorrie

04 mins: Anguissa forces a good save from Maingan.

CHANCE FOR NAPOLI!

20:03 , Jonathan Gorrie

02 mins: Anguissa gets across to square to Kvaratskhelia but his shot is saved by Maignan.

KICK-OFF!

20:02 , Jonathan Gorrie

We’re up and running at San Siro!

Teams in the tunnel

19:57 , Jonathan Gorrie

Here we go!

Napoli’s leading light

19:45 , Jonathan Gorrie

Pioli’s pre-match message

19:31 , Jonathan Gorrie

The AC Milan boss wants his team to lean on their history in this competition.

“Milan have a fantastic history of success in the Champions League. That said, it’s true that for several years we’ve failed to qualify. This match is very important. We’ve already managed to do better than last year. Now we’ll try to get past this round, but we’re aware that Napoli are very strong. At this point in the competition, you only meet strong teams and we will have to give our all to try and get through.”

Napoli turn to Eljif Elmas

19:20 , Jonathan Gorrie

With Osimhem injured, Napoli have turned to the North Macedonia international.

Elmas has scored seven goals this season but replacing his Nigerian teammate is as difficult task as you can get...

Latest odds

19:01 , Jonathan Gorrie

Betway - AC Milan vs Napoli

AC Milan - 17/10

Draw - 21/10

Napoli - 15/8

Betway - To Qualify

AC Milan - 31/20

Napoli - 1/2

Betway - Outright Champions League winner

Man City - Evens

Napoli 4/1

Real Madrid - 6/1

Inter Milan 15/2

Chelsea 14/1

AC Milan 17/1

Bayern Munich 35/1

Benfica 40/1

Confirmed Napoli lineup

18:52 , Jonathan Gorrie

Napoli XI: Meret, Di Lorenzo; Rrahmani, Minjae, Rui; Anguissa, Lobotka, Zielinksi; Lozano, Elmas, Kvaratskhelia

Confirmed AC Milan lineup

18:45 , Jonathan Gorrie

AC Milan XI: Maignan; Calabria, Kjaer, Tomori, Hernandez; Bennacer, Tonali; Diaz, Krunic, Giroud

18:32 , Jonathan Gorrie

Napoli 0-4 AC Milan

18:13 , Jonathan Gorrie

For all of Napoli’s domestic dominance this season, AC Milan smashed them 4-0 in their own backyard only weeks ago.

Quite the statement...

An all-Italian affair!

17:58 , Jonathan Gorrie

Inter’s win over Benfica last night means the Champions League looks set to have its first Italian finalist in six years!

Barring a collapse from the Nerazzurri of course...

Chelsea and Liverpool discover huge fee for Khvicha Kvaratskhelia as agent speaks out on Napoli star’s future

17:47 , Jonathan Gorrie

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia could cost as much as £86million should Napoli choose to sell the star winger next summer.

Chelsea and Liverpool are just two clubs to have been linked with the 21-year-old, who has bagged eight goals and ten assists since a move from Dinamo Batuni.

Napoli fans have already dubbed Kvaratskhelia as ‘Kvaradona’, in a likening to their club legend Diego Maradona.

After paying only £8.6m for his services from Georgian club Batuni, the player having left Rubin Kazan amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Kvaratskhelia’s agent Christian Emile has predicted a potentially massive profit for Napoli.

“You know what’s crazy, he’s done what he’s been in doing in Russia and Europe for the past couple of years,” he told Fabrizio Romano’s YouTube channel.

“He’s come to Napoli, he’s been brilliant, and people are talking about 100m euros.

“For me, if he continues to perform like this till the end of the season and next season, because there’s a zero per cent chance they sell him [in January]. He will reach 100m euros for sure.”

Victor Osimhen to Chelsea: Blues major contenders to beat Manchester United in striker transfer battle

17:44 , Jonathan Gorrie

Chelsea are strong contenders to sign Napoli striker Victor Osimhen this summer.

The 24-year-old is aware of interest from the Blues, who regard him as a primary target as they pursue another physical forward.

They believe the Nigeria international, who has scored 25 goals in 29 games this season, would allow them to compete with the firepower of Manchester City’s goal machine Erling Haaland.

Chelsea’s need is driven by a dismal season in front of goal. They have scored just 29 Premier League goals, more than only seven clubs in the division who all find themselves in a relegation battle. Kai Havertz is the club’s top scorer with nine goals in 36 matches across all competitions.

Manchester United are also interested in Osimhen. They sounded out Osimhen at Lille, before he joined Napoli, but are also keen on Tottenham striker Harry Kane, who has just 16 months to run on his current contract.

Read the full story here!

No Victor Osimhen, no problem as Napoli aim to take next step in historic season vs AC Milan

17:40 , Jonathan Gorrie

Napoli are cruising to their first Serie A title in 33 years, and ahead of their all-Italian Champions League quarter-final first leg against AC Milan tonight, calling them dark horses to lift the trophy would do them a disservice.

It is no longer the hot take it might have been in the autumn to declare Luciano Spalletti’s Napoli one of the best sides in Europe, if not the very best.

With an eclectic squad that includes Fulham flop Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Tottenham outcast Tanguy Ndombele, Diego Simeone’s son Giovanni, and Mexico’s Hirving Lozano, the team from Naples have conquered all in their path and topped their Champions League group above Liverpool.

While the famed Napoli side of the late-1980s was at times a one-man band with Diego Maradona conducting the orchestra, the whole of this team is greater than the sum of its parts.

That said, it has produced two breakout stars who will be among the most courted players in the transfer market this summer. Between them, 22-year-old Georgian Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen have scored or assisted 60 of Napoli’s 91 goals across Serie A and the Champions League this term.

Read Dom Smith’s full preview here!

Prediction: 1-1 draw

17:32 , Jonathan Gorrie

Napoli go into the tie as favourites, but that recent heavy defeat to Milan will have knocked their confidence slightly and the absence of Osimhen continues to be a major blow.

They are still likely to have enough over the 180 minutes, or perhaps longer, but Milan may well be able to keep the tie in the balance heading into next week’s return fixture.

Draw, 1-1.

Napoli team news: Osimhen ruled out

17:31 , Jonathan Gorrie

Victor Osimhen misses out for Napoli, having missed their last two matches with an adductor injury picked up while on international duty with Nigeria. He is set to miss the trip to Milan, and is in a race to return for next week’s return leg.

Giovanni Simeone, his potential replacement, was brought off just 15 minutes after being substituted on last time out against Lecce, with that issue meaning Giacomo Raspadori is set to lead the line.

Milan team news: Leao and Giroud to return

17:31 , Jonathan Gorrie

Milan made several changes in the goalless draw with Empoli over the weekend, and can be expected to bring their first-team stars back into the side. Rafael Leao, Olivier Giroud and Brahim Diaz are all set to return.

Simon Kjaer should also start, but Pierre Kalulu and Zlatan Ibrahimovic remain out for Milan.

Where to watch AC Milan vs Napoli

17:31 , Jonathan Gorrie

TV channel: In the UK, the game will be televised live on BT Sport 2, with coverage beginning at 7.15pm BST.

Live stream: Subscribers can also catch the contest live online via the BT Sport app and website.

Live blog: You can follow all the action on matchday via Standard Sport’s live blog.

Welcome

17:16 , Jonathan Gorrie

Good afternoon and welcome to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of AC Milan’s Champions League clash with Napoli tonight.

Kick-off inside San Siro is at 8pm BST.