AFC Bournemouth vs AC Milan Preview

Bournemouth and AC Milan meet at the Vitality Stadium on Thursday night in winning form, with the Cherries perfect in the Europa League and the Italians recovering from a first-night defeat. Bournemouth won 2-1 away at Real Sociedad and 3-0 at home against Sturm Graz, so they sit fifth in the standings on six points with a goal difference of +4. Milan lost 2-0 at home to Benfica in their opener and then won 4-0 away at Salzburg, which puts them 16th on three points with +2. Both clubs won again at the weekend: Bournemouth beat Sunderland 2-0 at home in the Premier League, and Milan beat Atalanta 3-2 at home in Serie A. A win would make it three from three for Bournemouth, while Milan would reach six points. Kick-off is at 8pm UK time.

Bournemouth have won three and lost two of their last five, scoring eight goals and conceding seven. The latest was Sunday’s 2-0 home win over Sunderland in the Premier League. Sturm Graz were beaten 3-0 at home in the Europa League three days earlier, on 15 October, and both of those results were clean sheets. Chelsea won 5-1 against Bournemouth on 10 October, the heaviest result of the five and a game in which five of the seven goals the Cherries have conceded in this run arrived. Liverpool won 1-0 at the Vitality Stadium on 20 September, one of two games in which Bournemouth failed to score or were held to a single goal. The oldest result is the 2-1 win away at Real Sociedad in the Europa League opener on 17 September. At home, Bournemouth won two and lost one of their three games in the sample, and away they won one and lost one.

AC Milan have won three, drawn one and lost one of their last five, scoring 11 goals and conceding five. The latest was Sunday’s 3-2 home win over Atalanta in Serie A. Salzburg were beaten 4-0 away in the Europa League on 15 October, the biggest margin of the five and the first of two clean sheets in the run. Sassuolo held Milan to a 1-1 draw on 11 October, and Lecce were beaten 3-0 at home on 20 September, the second clean sheet. The one defeat is the oldest result, a 2-0 home loss to Benfica in the Europa League opener on 16 September, which was also the only game in which Milan failed to score. Milan won two and lost one of their three home games in the sample, and their two away games brought a win and a draw.

The clubs have met just once on record, and Milan won that game. AC Milan beat Bournemouth 2-1 in a friendly on 3 September 2016, with Bournemouth listed as the home side. That makes it one win for Milan, none for Bournemouth and no draws going into Thursday. With a single meeting in the record, there is no pattern to name beyond that narrow Milan win, and the visit to the Vitality Stadium will be the first meeting between the sides listed since then.

Bournemouth are fifth in the league phase standings on six points with a goal difference of +4, and Milan are 16th on three points with +2. A win would take Milan to six points, though their position would depend on results elsewhere on matchday three.

In the UK, the match is live on TNT Sports 1 and TNT Sports Ultimate, with HBO Max streaming. Viewers in Italy can watch on Sky Sport 252 and Sky Sport Uno, with SKY Go Italia and NOW TV streaming, while in the USA it’s on CBS Sports Network and TUDN USA, with Paramount+ and fuboTV streaming. In Ireland, TNT Sports 1 and HBO Max carry the game.

Possible Lineups

AFC Bournemouth — Form

AC Milan — Form

Head to Head

Where to Watch

Table

Europa League Standings