Having recovered from a slow start to beat Zenit, Anderlecht can make a giants step towards the knockout stages by beating out-of-form Milan. The Rossoneri couldn’t beat Malaga at home, but they now have another excellent chance to stake their claim for the second place in Group C.

Five out of five

With the Belgian giants largely struggling in Europe over the last five or six years, nobody believed they could reach Champions League knockout stages this term, after finally qualifying for the group phase. Anderlecht, nonetheless, had a good start to their European campaign as they held Milan to a goalless draw at San Siro, but home defeat to Malaga proved to be a major setback. Anderlecht were then very unlucky to lose in St Petersburg, having done well to match very good Zenit side, but they then made amends by beating the Russians in the return leg. Meanwhile, John van den Brom’s side have been showing a lot of improvement on domestic stage, and they go into this game on the back of a five-match winning run, so there is every chance RSCA will attack their opponents from the off, given that a victory would see them move to second position in the group.

With Cheikhou Kouyate expected to recover from a minor injury, boss van den Brom should have filly fit squad to choose from.

Milan continue to entertain

AC Milan were always going to have problems after they stayed without a number of key players in the summer, but the Rossoneri were, nonetheless, expected to keep their results respectable. While showing glimpses of quality in some of the games, Max Allegri’s side have been unable to find any sort of consistency this season, and they have yet to record back to back wins this term. The team have been showing some improvement following the dismal start to the season, but while they continue to score goals on regular basis, shaky defence is proving to be a major issue. Having conceded no less than 9 goals in last 5 competitive fixtures, it is perfectly clear that the Rossoneri will have to score at least a couple of goals in order to win in Brussels. The good thing is that Stephan El Shaarawy is still scoring goals for fun, while the return of Pato and Robinho should help the team continue their excellent scoring run.

Massimo Ambrosini is doubtful with an adductor injury, but Daniele Bonera, Ignazio Abate, Luca Antonini, Sulley Muntari and Djamel Masbah are long-term casualties.

Verdict

With both Anderlecht and Milan scoring goals for fun and looking for a victory in Brussels, there is every chance we will see a highly entertaining game at Constant Vanden Stock. This match looks too close to call when final outcome is concerned, but we should see quite a few goals in the process.

Top pick: Over 2.5 goals   2.10 (11/10) @ Coral

Alternative pick 1: Both teams to score   1.80 (4/5) @ BetFred

Alternative pick 2: Milan Draw no bet   1.80 (4/5) @ bet365