Milan captain and right-back Davide Calabria has predicted an end-to-end match when Borussia Dortmund visit San Siro in the fifth round of Champions League group stage fixtures on Tuesday evening.
The intensity is hotting up in Group F, widely considered to be this season’s ‘Group of Death’, as all four teams find themselves within three points of each other with two matches left to play before the knock-out rounds.
Milan’s opponents Dortmund currently lead the group on seven points, Paris Saint-Germain follow closely behind on six, Milan have five points, while Newcastle have four.
In the best case scenario, the Rossoneri could finish Tuesday at the top of the Group with a win, while a loss could send them into fourth place depending on the result between PSG and Newcastle.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference alongside Stefano Pioli on Monday, Calabria warned that it will not be an easy ride against Edin Terzic’s Dortmund .
“Playing against great players causes a lot of difficulties, but it certainly brings a lot out of you as well and that’s what we want,” Calabria said.
“I expect an all-out performance, end to end, with a team that likes to attack a lot, plenty of counterattacks.”
The 26-year-old was also asked what the team had done to work on their defensive performances from set-pieces, which have been identified as a weak point in the 2023-24 season.
“Yes, we have looked at it in recent days, trying to fix situations that we could have done better. We have to improve by analysing the tapes. I myself missed a pass. We are high-level players, we have to understand the mistakes and do better on the pitch.”
Calabria also told the press room that while top performances are expected from Milan, the squad is still young and have plenty of room to grow.
“We act as superheroes, but we are a group of 15, 18, 25-year-olds. We live for the joy of playing football. It’s our job, we put in a lot of determination, intensity and desire. And we do it to make our families proud and to make the supporters happy.”