PREVIEW CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Quarter-finals second leg

FC Bayern - AC Milan
first leg (2:2)

FC Bayern München coach Ottmar Hitzfeld will be asking his side to "go up a gear" when the Bundesliga outfit welcome AC Milan to the Fußball Arena München with a place in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals at stake - but they will have to buck a losing trend against the Rossoneri. Only Daniel Van Buyten's dramatic equaliser deep into added time at the San Siro last week helped Bayern avoid a seventh defeat in nine meetings with Milan. Yet with the hard part seemingly done, hopes are high that the red half of Munich can build on the foundations of a formidable home record and hold firm in the second leg. "We go up a gear when we're at home," said Hitzfeld. "We are capable of pushing up our performance by ten to 20 per cent." Statistics certainly back that up - Bayern have never lost a UEFA Champions League game by more than a goal in their Bavarian heartland - though Hitzfeld is having to contend with a host of injuries. Willy Sagnol (knee) and Martín Demichelis (muscle strain) are ruled out, while Lucio and Owen Hargreaves are expected to play after coming through an open training session on Tuesday. There was no Bastian Schweinsteiger, however, and the man who scored Bayern's clincher in Saturday's 2-1 victory at Hannover 96 is a major doubt with a knee complaint. Hitzfeld believes the likes of Andreas Ottl provide ample cover yet is nonetheless grateful for the return from suspension of Oliver Kahn and Mark van Bommel, as his team look to reach the last four for the first time since winning the competition in 2001. "Van Bommel will add more presence in midfield but it won't be about individuals - the better team will win," he said. It is a sentiment echoed by Milan counterpart Carlo Ancelotti, who refused to place importance on the Rossoneri's 'previous' against the German club. "What matters is how the teams perform," insisted the 47-year-old, whose side beat Empoli FC 3-1 at the weekend. "Bayern will look to control the game so, for us, the recipe for success is to play good football and perform. We need to have faith in our quality and remain upbeat about our chances." Milan are hampered by the absence of the suspended Alberto Gilardino, though in Filippo Inzaghi, Ancelotti can call upon a man who has scored more UEFA club competition goals than all but Gerd Müller, Raúl González, Andriy Shevchenko and Eusébio. "He is not yet 100 per cent fit but I'm confident he will play," said the coach. "The goals he has scored in the Champions League speak volumes and he has scored against Bayern in the past." That came in a 4-1 success in Milan last season. Ancelotti would no doubt settle for 1-0 this time around.

Probable teams

FC Bayern : Oliver Kahn; Hasan Salihamidžić, Lucio, Daniel Van Buyten, Philipp Lahm; Owen Hargreaves, Mark van Bommel, Andreas Ottl, Bastian Schweinsteiger; Roy Makaay, Lukas Podolski.

AC Milan : Dida; Massimo Oddo, Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Nesta, Marek Jankulovski; Gennaro Gattuso, Andrea Pirlo, Massimo Ambrosini, Clarence Seedorf; Kaká; Filippo Inzaghi.


Liverpool FC - PSV Eindhoven
first leg (3:0)

Liverpool FC's 3-0 first-leg lead over PSV Eindhoven suggests Wednesday's UEFA Champions League quarter-final may have the air of a triumphal procession into the semis for the five-time winners, but manager Rafael Benítez insists there is unfinished business to attend to at Anfield. Benítez is eager to point out that Liverpool themselves wrote the blueprint for overhauling a three-goal deficit, against AC Milan in their epic 2005 UEFA Champions League final triumph, so he is demanding maximum effort and concentration from his team in the second leg. "Three goals is a big difference but in Istanbul we were three goals down. We must be focused because PSV have quality and they will try from the beginning," said Benítez. The Liverpool boss says he will urge his side to control the game with a high-tempo approach, adding: "They are ready. If we score the first goal it will be easier but we know from experience, you always have to keep going until the end. Of course I prefer to be in this situation, but it's strange because we must talk about 'no complacency' and being careful of things like this when we are playing the second leg." Liverpool, 2-1 victors at Reading FC in the Premiership on Saturday, have Mohamed Sissoko available after a one-match ban, though the encouraging form of Javier Mascherano may keep the Mali midfielder on the bench. Dutch international Dirk Kuyt misses out through suspension and Craig Bellamy is expected to take his place up front. Left-sided attacking full-back Fabio Aurelio, meanwhile, is sidelined for the remainder of the reason after rupturing his achilles tendon in Eindhoven and Benítez says resting other players could be an option. PSV, by contrast, are struggling for form, having failed to win in their last six competitive outings - including a 2-1 weekend reverse at NEC Nijmegen. In addition, the Dutch champions and league leaders will be without several key figures on Merseyside as Alex, Ibrahim Afellay, Edison Méndez, Jan Kromkamp and Michael Reiziger are all injured. Coach Ronald Koeman has added youth team defenders Rens van Eijden and Olivier ter Horst to his depleted squad, though they are unlikely to play. Another defender, Dirk Marcellis, could make his UEFA Champions League debut in the week of his 19th birthday. Koeman has a philosophical view of his team's prospects of staying in the competition. He said: "It's not impossible, but let's be realistic about it. Being 3-0 behind against a team like Liverpool means pegging back three goals and it is going to be quite difficult. We are in the quarter-finals of the [UEFA] Champions League and that's something that we have to be pretty proud of."

Probable teams

Liverpool : Pepe Reina; Steve Finnan, Jamie Carragher, Daniel Agger, John Arne Riise; Steven Gerrard, Xabi Alonso, Javier Mascherano, Mark González; Craig Bellamy, Peter Crouch.

PSV: Heurelho Gomes; Csaba Fehér, Manuel Da Costa, Dirk Marcellis, Carlos Salcido; Mika Väyrynen, Timmy Simons, Phillip Cocu, Jason Culina; Arouna Koné, Jefferson Farfán.