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- May 20, 2005
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AC Milan Vs Tottenham Hotspur
Uefa Champions League
Venue: San Siro Date: Saturday, 12 February Kick-off: 1945 GMT
Coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio 5 live and Live on Sky Sports 2
Uefa Champions League
Venue: San Siro Date: Saturday, 12 February Kick-off: 1945 GMT
Coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio 5 live and Live on Sky Sports 2
For more on live coverage please visit Geez's Live Media Thread
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Catch AC Milan v Spurs, live on Sky Sports HD2 &2
Tottenham face AC Milan on Tuesday night at the San Siro in the first leg of their last 16 Champions League tie.
Spurs qualified for the last 16 by finishing top of Group A ahead of Milan's city rivals Inter, while the Rossoneri finished second in Group G behind Real Madrid.
Despite a number of selection problems, Spurs boss Harry Redknapp has promised to go on the attack against the Serie A leaders.
Spurs have made the trip to Italy without winger Gareth Bale, who scored a hat-trick against Inter at the San Siro earlier in the competition, because of a back injury.
Niko Kranjcar, who has scored two winning goals in his last two outings, is set to deputise for Bale again wide on the left.
Rafael van der Vaart will return to the side after recovering from a calf problem which forced him to miss the weekend win at Sunderland.
Peter Crouch is expected to shake off a back problem to feature in the squad, while Redknapp will give Luka Modric until the last minute to prove his fitness after undergoing appendix surgery.
Tom Huddlestone, Ledley King and Younes Kaboul are all missing through injury, while Jermaine Jenas is suspended.
Wilson Palacios and Sandro are set to start in midfield if Redknapp decides not to risk Modric from the start with the Croat only returning to training on Sunday.
Milan team news
Milan are missing January signings Antonio Cassano, Mark van Bommel and Urby Emanuelson as they are all ineligible.
Rossoneri captain Massimo Ambrosini and Andrea Pirlo are both sidelined through injury along with former Spurs man Kevin-Prince Boateng.
Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri is set to field a three-man attack with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Robinho and Alexandre Pato all starting.
Alessandro Nesta, Nicola Legrottaglie, Ignazio Abate and Luca Antonini have all recovered from knocks to take their places in the squad.
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Gareth Bale will sit out Tottenham's Champions League last-16 first-leg match against AC Milan on Tuesday after failing to recover from a back injury.
The Welshman, who has been a revelation for Spurs in the past year, did not travel with the squad to Italy on Monday despite hopes he might be fit.
That will mean another chance for the rejuvenated Niko Kranjcar, while Rafael van der Vaart (calf) will also play.
Peter Crouch (back) is a doubt, though, as is Luka Modric (appendicitis).
It means boss Harry Redknapp's side could line up at the San Siro with something resembling a skeleton first XI, with long-term absentees Tom Huddlestone, Ledley King and Younes Kaboul, as well as the suspended Jermaine Jenas, also unavailable.
Serie A leaders AC Milan will be without ineligible January signings Antonio Cassano, Mark van Bommel and Urby Emanuelson.
That would mean coach Massimiliano Allegri deploying a three-man front line of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Robinho and Alexandre Pato, with few attacking options on the bench and key midfield duo Andrea Pirlo and Massimo Ambrosini also out through injury.
But Bale's absence, in particular, is a big blow to Redknapp's plans - especially following the left-sided player's demolition of Inter Milan earlier in the season.
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Despite losing 4-3, Tottenham fought back from 4-0 down on their last visit to the San Siro thanks to a Bale hat-trick, and the 21-year-old produced another man-of-the-match performance when AC's cross-city rivals Inter visited White Hart Lane as the Londoners secured an outstanding 3-1 win.
"I'd like to be able to scare Milan and say he's going to be available, but he's not," said Redknapp on Sunday. "He's struggling to get over this back injury.
"The specialists don't see too much of a problem there. There's nothing that should keep him out too long... [but] we've got to make sure he's right. He's a young lad and he's very important. He's got a great future in front of him.
''On Sunday morning, when the fitness coaches started to push him a bit, he couldn't go on. He doesn't feel he's ready to play. We've got to take our time and make sure he's right when he comes back."
Modric, too, looks unlikely to play, with Redknapp admitting: "He trained on Sunday morning and felt a bit better again but to push him back into it would be difficult. He's not quite up to speed yet."
And that will mean a start for Brazilian Sandro. The 21-year-old was not even named in Tottenham's 25-man Champions League squad for the group stages.
"[Sandro] will be playing, for sure, because I've only got two central midfielders [alongside Wilson Palacios]," said Redknapp. "We've got to wrap them in cotton wool and they'll be playing."
Tottenham qualified for the last 16 after finishing top of Group A, pushing Inter Milan down into second and knocking out FC Twente and Werder Bremen, while finished AC Milan finished second in Group G behind winners Real Madrid.
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