Dortmund vs AC Milan, summary: score, goals & highlights | UEFA Champions League 23/24

That's all, folks!

Thanks for joining in on the live coverage of tonight's game. 

Make sure to check out the rest of ASUSA for all the latest sport news.

Joe

Here's how the group looks after the result:

PSG's shock loss to Newcastle sees them cede top spot to the English side, but the points are still tight after two results and no team can afford a slip up with plenty of football to be played. 

Full-time thoughts:

The group of death is alive and kicking and that's probably the most philosophical conclusion from a game that won't make the cut for the end of season DVD.

Neither team performed to their maximum level as Dortmund and Milan played out a tight, often stodgy goalless draw at Signal Iduna Park, with the fiery, intense atmosphere behind the goals juxtaposing the lacklustre action in front of them.

The best chance of the game fell to... come back to me on that one, but it might have been Samu Chukwueze, whose shot from close range was well stopped by Kobel's chest.

A truly bright spark was the addition of both Bynoe-Gittens and Nmecha to the pitch in yellow shirts, as both players looked lively and gave the Milan defenders something serious to think about. Saying that, Thiaw was probably Milan's best player on the night.

Full-time!

The points are shared at the Signal Iduna Park.

Thiaw makes a VITAL interception as Adeyemi peels off the right wing in behind the defence; Bynoe-Gittens runs the other way with the ball and slips a pass through the gap, which is blocked. Fine defending.

Adli goes down in the box as he tries to get on the end of Rafa Leão's chipped pass over the defence but the referee says no.

3 added minutes.

CHANCE FOR DORTMUND

Nmecha curls a seriously scary effort just past the far post with a casual flick of his right boot.

OVER THE BAR!

Can smacks a shot that flies centrally and over the goal.

Musah booked.

A dangerous free-kick is given on the edge of the Milanbox after Musah takes out his opponent as they drive towards goal. A big chance to shoot on goal...

Milan break in a flash and Leão opens the play right to Samu, whose shot is poor and straight at Kobel. To be fair, it's a nice save under pressure but Chukwueze should have put that in the corner from such close range.

HUGE MISS FROM CHUKWUEZE

Coming in off the right, the former Villarreal winger whistles a curling effort just wide of the far post. 

SAMU CHUKWUEZE FLASHES A SHOT WIDE

Moukoko ON

Füllkrug OFF

The full-back gets on the end of a return cross from Rafa Leão and what a goal that would have been. He flew at the ball like he'd been fired out of a cannon at a circus and connected late with the ball, sending it whizzing over the bar.

THEO HEADS OVER FROM CLOSE RANGE

Leão is brought down as Milan break and Hummels happily takes the yellow card.

Into the final10minutes of the game.

Can's effort from distance is dragged wide but it was a special run from Nmecha who span round his marker and drove forward towards goal to set up the German for the strike.

Can skips inside from the right, wiggles past a defender to make a yard of space, sets up the shot... and watches on as the ball is stolen from his feet at the last second.

Bynoe-Gittens dances in from the left and smashes a thunderbolt over the bar. A nice move from the 19-year-old.

Füllkrug's shot on the spin is blocked fantastically well by Tomori inside the six-yard box. Dortmund turning the screw now...

Dortmund have just started to pop the ball around for about a minute on the edge of the Milan box, and it's Schlotterbeck who fires from distance. A nice move from the home side.

Let's see if the substitutes turn the gears up in the game, which has been played in the stands rather than on the pitch.

Nmecha & Bynoe-Gittens ON

Reus & Malen OFF

Thoughts on Pulisic:

A disappointing night for the USMNT captain, who did not take his chance and let the game pass him by.

Florenzi, Okafor & Chukwueze ON

Giroud, Calabria & Pulisic OFF

Bensebaini goes down holding his leg after a clash of kneecaps with Pulisic.

Samu Chukwueze is getting ready to come on.

A point for each side, while not terrible, is hardly ideal either. Especially given the fact that PSG are currently losing 3-1 to Newcastle in a result that would blow the group wide open.

Adeyemi is straight on the ball and races down the right wing before taking a tumble in the box - the referee blows the other way.

Adeyemi ON

Brandt OFF

Some nice pressure on the Dortmund goal ends in a corner to the away side. Malen clears and Dortmund, who have relied on Hummels to step in twice in the last two minutes, survive.

The AC Milan fans, clearly happy with the performance of the side in the second half, are singing back in response to the noise from the Yellow Wall - it's a truly special atmosphere we've got here tonight.

Half an hour to go, no goals yet...

The fans are making their voices heard!

The huge crowd are screaming in unison to get their team going, who've had it slightly tougher this half than the first.

Adli ON

Pobega OFF

AC Milan are about to make a change...

Dortmund are keeping the ball at the back and trying to regain the momentum in the game, which is certainly with Stefano Pioli's side.

That's the best chance of the game for Milan and it fell to Pulisic, who hit a central shot on the turn from just a few yards out. 

Rafa Leão's cross into the box found the US international but he could not take advantage of the positive position he found himself in.

BIG SAVE FROM KOBEL!

MISSED BY PULISIC

Dortmund get their first positive touches of the half, just outside the Milan box. The Italians push back and press well, forcing the home side back, all the way to Kobel in goal.

Well, the opening minutes of the second half have certainly been for Stefano Pioli's side, as Theo and Rafa remind everyone that they're actually very good footballers.

AC Milan win a corner after Özcan blocks Leão's cross. Again, it was great work from Theo to drive down the left. The full-back has started brightly.

The corner, unfortunately for the Italian side, comes to nothing.

Bang! What a stunning sliding challenge from Mats Hummels on Theo as the defender broke down the left wing.

Nice work from Özcan to cut out Theo Hernández's dangerous dribble through the middle as the former Real Madrid full-back thundered through a tiny gap between two players in white.

The start is certainly not as frantic as the first, with the two teams sniffing each other from a distance like nervous puppies. Nobody wants to make a mistake in the opening stages of the second half.

And we're off!

No changes for either side at the break.

Here come the teams!

We're ready to go again!

Overall I'd say Dortmund will be the happier team

Despite the lack of clear-cut chances, I would say that BVB are certainly in the driving seat in terms of momentum.

Half-time stats:

xG: 0.65 - 0.79

Shots: 9 - 6

Shots on target: 2 - 0

Possession: 58-42

Corners: 5 - 4

Shots inside box: 6 - 4

Half-time thoughts:

Dortmund have been the better side in a strange game that has not seen too many chances.

I call it a strange game as I think that Dortmund have been better, but they haven't really forced Maignan into anything that I'd call a great save.

The best chance of the game for the home side was either Malen's shot from distance that whizzed low past the post, or Reus' effort from the corner that was flicked on and then blocked by Yunus Musah.

As for AC Milan, there was a header from a corner that went over and that's been about it: Rafa Leão has looked dangerous in flashes but is yet to have any significant impact on the game.

Half-time!

No goals at the break.

In his best Fede Valverde impression, Theo Hernández strikes from range and sees his shot take paint off the crossbar as it flies just over!

THEO FLASHES OVER THE BAR!

We're into the final minute of the half.

A corner is flicked on to Reus at the back post and it's actually Musah who gets in the way before an easy goal is scored!

HUGE CHANCE FOR REUS

The ball is dropping over his head and the full-back flashes a volley at Maignan which is gets a huge gloved hand to.

Just before that, a big mistake by Tomori allowed Reus in, but the shot from the German was spooned and Thiaw cleared.

BENSEBAINI FORCES THE SAVE

Rafa Leão turns his speed up to Level 14 and leaves Ryerson for dead down the wing before playing in a low ball to Giroud that the Frenchman can't quite get under control. Schlotterbeck clears.

Hummels with some fantastic defending to effortlessly nudge Pulisic away like James Maddison in the queue for a carvery.

A corner is, once again, terribly cleared by BVB, and it's hoofed back into the box by Milan, where Giroud is waiting to stab the ball over the bar from close range. That was a massive chance for the away side.

MASSIVE CHANCE MISSED BY GIROUD

He's on his own as the cross is floated in from the right and Brandt's touch is delightful with his chest, caressing the ball like a fabergé egg before twisting his hips, rotating his shoulders and crashing a ferocious overhead kick over the bar. Not recommended with fabergé eggs.

BRANDT SMASHES AN OVERHEAD KICK OVER THE BAR

Thiaw clears Ryerson's cross as the full-back makes up some yards down the right. AC Milan are struggling hugely to get any sort of possession sequence together in any area of the pitch.

Dortmund get a dangerous free kick on the left side of the box near the corner flag. Five players line up inside the box wearing yellow shirts but Reus goes for glory and whips the ball over the bar at the near post.

An error from Calabria lets Füllkrug in behind and he smashes a low shot towards goal that's saved well by the French goalkeeper.

SAVE FROM MAIGNAN

Something to keep an eye on:

Both Brandt and Reus are finding a huge chasm of interstellar space behind Yunus Musah, who is drifting away from his teammates in the midfield. 

A few times now the home side have been able to attack thanks to one of the two taking the ball and spinning around in the space before driving towards goal.

As I was typing that Dortmund were having a lot of harmless possession, the winger turns on his heels and smashes a low drive from distance across goal that flies past the right post. A fantastic effort.

MALEN SHOOTS JUST WIDE

The referee is becoming a little card happy - this time it's former Liverpool midfielder EmreCanwho'sbooked for bringing down Olivier Giroud and his lovely eyes.

Bensebaini gets a head on Brandt's free-kick but the ball spins over the bar; Maignan had it well covered.

Reijnders is booked for bringing down Reus as the German burst through the midfield line.

What a huge chance missed by Milan and Theo, who drove through the middle of the pitch with Dortmund scrambling back. 

Unfortunately, his pass to Rafa Leão was terrible, rolling behind him, and the winger was forced to stop, putting an end to the 3v3 counter that the away side had in their favour.

Rafa Leão dances past Emre Can and burns past Schlotterbeck in the first positive on-ball moment we've seen from the Portuguese. 

Schlotterbeck rugby tackles the winger on halfway and is booked.

Dortmund's press has been superb in the opening stages: AC Milan can't get the ball from the wide areas into the middle third where Yunus, Pobega and Reijnders are waiting.

Thiaw's header loops up and over the bar from a corner as Kobel watches on in the Dortmund goal. A decent chance for Pioli's side.

So far, the two USMNT internationals - Yunus and Pulisic - haven't had a sniff of the ball and have looked extremely quiet.

Malen drops a shoulder against Calabria and makes himself a yard of space on the left to fire a cross in that's blocked out for a corner to the home side. A fantastic catch by Maignan calms the situation for Milan.

Thiaw lets a long pass go behind him and Füllkrug almost spins around him to get a touch on the dropping ball. However, the referee blows for offside from the striker and the potentially positive move breaks down.

Milan get some time on the ball in the middle third and look to take the sting out of Dortmund's fast start but they fumble possession and Pobega's thoughtless kick to nowhere sees the home side easily regain possession. 

Dortmund are biting back and are getting a lot of joy on the left side: another clearance is hacked away by Tomori as Reus is causing a lot of danger with his movement.

Bensebaini's cross is semi-cleared towards Malen, who hits a snapshot from inside the box that is sent wide.

CHANCE FOR DORTMUND

Gasps from the crowd as a series of Milan corners end with shaky defending from the home side; various swinging legs finally connect with the ball that's allowed the drop inside the box and Dortmund survive.

The first moment of danger comes for Dortmund after Reus breaks forward with Julian Brandt.

AC Milan do well to get back and swipe the ball from Reus before breaking themselves with Pobega, who shoots on goal - Hummels blocks well.

Tomori does well to step out of his defensive line and cut out a ball in from the right. Dortmund are starting to control the ball.

Both teams lose early possession as they are pressed extremely highly by their opponents in a fast-paced start that reflects the fireworks and smoke bombs coming from the stands.

And we're off!

Dortmund get us going from right to left.

Dortmund are in their yellow-black-yellow kit while AC Milan are in all-white.

It's time for the Chaaaaaampions League anthem!

A mixture of smiles and serious faces from the players, and a genuinely spine-tingling noise from the fans!

Here come the two teams!

'You'll Never Walk Alone' is ringing out at the stadium...

Yes, the song is not just for the scousers, and it's being belted out at full volume right now as the players line up in the tunnel!

Here are the away fans!

It's some noise inside the Signal Iduna Park tonight - this is what the Champions League is all about!

The other game in Group F...

Newcastle host PSG in the other game in the Group of Death, and that makes today's tie even more urgent for both sides in Germany as they look for their first set of three points. 

Who will take the win today? Hit us up on Twitter @English_AS or @j4brennan - get your prediction right and I'll post your tweet on the feed!

Warmups complete!

Both team have finished their warmups and the sides are making their way down the tunnel for the final team talks ahead of kick-off!

The warmups are underway!

Both teams are warming up on the pitch in preparation for the game.

Player to watch:

My player to watch is AC Milan's tricky, lightning-fast winger, who can chip in with goals and assists. He's a huge player for his national team, providing a lot of experience and tactical intelligence as well as a spark of pace and ability than can leave defenders scrambling.

Yes, as you can probably tell, I haven't named the player and there's a picture of two wingers above, which has a simple reason: I can't choose between Rafa Leão and Christian Pulisic. Both players have the capacity to win the game tonight, so we'll have to see if either of them takes it upon themselves to give AC Milan the points on the road.

What is Milan's record in the UEFA Champions League?

The recent return of the Rossoneri to the Champions League has come as something of a dream for us football nostalgia freaks, as they are, without a doubt, one of Europe’s most historic and lauded teams. 

The Milan club have won the Champions League seven times in their history, making them second only in the ranking to Real Madrid, who also have a few (14). 

Their most recent success in the competition was the famous 2006/07 season, when, after losing to Liverpool in an identical final matchup in 2005, the Italians were out for revenge. Two goals from Pippo Inzaghi were enough for the side to overcome their English opponents and claim the trophy once again.

They came close to doing so last year, when they reached the semi-finals, but city rivals Inter were too much and they instead made the final, eventually losing to a team of robots.

Here's a reminder of the starting XIs:

BVB:

GK: Kobel

DEF: Ryerson - Schlotterbeck - Hummels - Bensebaini

MID: Özcan - Can - Reus

ATT: Malen - Füllkrug - Brandt

AC MILAN:

GK: Maignan

DEF: Calabria - Thiaw - Tomori - Theo

MID: Yunus - Reijnders - Pobega

ATT: Pulisic - Giroud - Rafa Leão

Here are the Dortmund players!

The home side's players step out onto the pitch as the stadium slowly fills; the noise later is going to be electric as kick-off approaches!

Dortmund's Champions League history

The home side in today’s match were crowned European champions on one occasion, back in the 1996/97 season, when they reached the final and beatJuventus at the Olympiastadion in Munich in what was the first title for Germany since its reunification in 1990.

It was also the last time that only league winners were included in the tournament. 

Dortmund came second in their group behind Atlético Madrid, and they made it past Auxerre and Manchester United before coming up against the reigning champions, Juventus, who they beat 3-1 on the night with goals from Riedle (2) and Ricken, with Del Piero scoring for The Old Lady.

They did make the final once again, and I was almost going to say ‘very recently’, until I checked that 2012 was indeed ten years ago…

This game, against German rivals Bayern, was held in Wembley and it was the classic Dortmund team of Reus, Lewandowski and Gundogan that smoked Real Madrid 4-1 in the first leg of the semi-final. However, in the game against Bayern, a late goal from Robben was enough to seal the fifth title for Die Bayern.

BVB manager pre-game quotes:

AC Milan XI revealed:

Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah get the nod for the starting XI!

Dortmund XI in!

Here's how the Black & Yellow line up for tonight's game:

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Borussia Dortmund vs AC Milan: times, how to watch on TV, stream online | UEFA Champions League

Christian Pulisic plays football with the Mrs and the ex at Signal Iduna Park, with the German side desperate for the win after losing their opening game. 

If you fancy checking out how he gets on, as well as sticking around with the build-up, live coverage and post-game reaction on AS USA, here's how you can get the game on your TV or device screen.

Where is the game being played?

The biggest stadium in Germany and the famous home of the ‘Yellow Wall’, the Signal Iduna Park stadium (also known as Westfalenstadion) is one of Europe’s most intimidating and feared venues for opposition teams.

It holds just over81,000 and when they get going, there are not many - if any - teams in Europe and the world who can match the noise.

The Yellow Wall is the south terrace and is known for, well, looking like a yellow wall when the thousands of fans stand side-by-side as they create the atmosphere that has seen opposition teams crumble.

Bayern legend, Bastian Schweinsteiger, once said that ”it is the Yellow Wall that scares me the most”.

If that wasn’t scary enough for AC Milan, Dortmund are unbeaten in 18 matches in all competitions at home.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Who is Szymon Marciniak, the referee for Borussia Dortmund vs AC Milan in the Champions League?

Szymon Marciniak is the man with the whistle today.

The 42-year-old Polish referee is a seasonedprofessional, and is on quite a recent run of overseeing fantastic games, having been in charge of both the 2022 World Cup final between Argentina and France, as well as the 2023 UEFA Champions League final between Manchester City and Inter Milan.

Is this a hint at some potential team news?

Will we see Captain America in Stefano Pioli's starting XI for the game today?

The stage is set!

The Westfalenstadion is ready to go for the game tonight. Just look at that pitch...

Fine league form for both sides...

The German side, now Bellingham-less, sit 4th in the Bundesliga after 6 games.

They are unbeaten in the domestic competition with 4 wins and 2 draws, and their last two games, a victory over Hoffenheim and defeat of Wolfsburg (above), provided the perfect rebound from a loss to PSG in the opening game of the continental competition.

As for ACMilan, they too are also going through some impressive domestic form in the early part of the season, and they are second in Serie A, with just goal difference separating them from the top spot.

They’ve played 7 games and won 6, losing the other. Their last match was an impressive 2-0 home win over strugglers Lazio, with a goal from Captain America, Christian Pulisic, opening the scoring for the Rossoneri.

How things look in the Group of Death:

Group F is certainly this season’s Group of death: PSG, Newcastle, AC Milan and Dortmund were the unlucky sides placed together and as soon as the draw was made, everyone had their eyes set on this jumble of teams. 

The first round of games did not disappoint, either, with AC Milan and Newcastle playing out a fascinating draw at San Siro, while PSG showed that they are the big boys around here with a statement 2-0 win over Dortmund.

That leaves the German side bottom of the pile after the first game, with Edin Terzic’s side looking to take advantage of their excellent home record tonight.

Team news: AC Milan

Ruben Loftus-Cheek sustained an abdominal injury at the weekend and he will watch the game from the stands. The lack of the former Chelsea player could see USMNT international Yunus Musah step in to deputise. 

As for other potential changes, ChristianPulisic made something of an impact when he came on against the English opponents in the previous game, so we could see Samuel Chukwueze dropped in favour of Captain America.

Team news: BVB

Thomas Meunier, Mateu Morey and Marcel Sabitzer are all out of the clash tonight with various physical issues.

Ramy Bensebaini received a red card against Hoffenheim at the weekend but his ban does not affect European competition and he should start the game.

Welcome!

Can a second-round group stage match be considered ‘mustwin’? Well, that’s certainty what we’ve got on our hands tonight, as Borussia Dortmund take on AC Milan in the Champions League.

Results weren’t ideal for either side in their opening games of the UCL this season, and the points feel like they count for double in what many are calling the ‘GroupofDeath’!

It’s Joe here today to guide you through the action with ASUSA.

Stay tuned for the build-up ahead of KO and reaction to the result after 90 minutes.