Milan has a slight advantage over Tottenham thanks to Diaz.

With a 1-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur in the first leg of the last-16 on Tuesday at the San Siro, AC Milan moved closer to reaching their first Champions League quarterfinal in 11 years.

After Fraser Forster, Tottenham's backup goalkeeper, made two outstanding saves in the seventh minute to keep the Londoners at bay, the Spaniard headed in a rebound to give the seven-time champions the lead.

Spurs, who were weakened by injuries and suspensions, responded positively and controlled possession in the first half, but they were unable to cause serious concern for the hosts.

After the break, Milan should have extended their lead but Malick Thiaw and Charles De Ketelaere both missed glorious headed opportunities.

Although Tottenham couldn't avoid suffering their first-ever loss to Milan, they added Brazilian forward Richarlison for the final 20 minutes, and they will go home with the possibility of turning the match around and moving on to the round of eight.

With all the duels, the game wasn't difficult to prepare tactically, but Milan manager Stefano Pioli was pleased with how his players played.

"We had several excellent chances to score a second goal. Although I am pleased with the performance, this is only the first leg and the next game will undoubtedly be harder."

Prior to their matchup with Antonio Conte's Spurs team, Milan had a dismal recent record against Premier League clubs, winning just one of 17 times.

TENACIOUS DISPLAY

However, Milan ended that streak with a tenacious performance against inconsistent opponents who were without the injured Rodrigo Bentancur and suspended Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in midfield, as well as Hugo Lloris at goalie.

Theo Hernandez defeated Cristian Romero before launching a shot at Forster, who made a good save, giving the San Siro crowd something to cheer about right away.

Diaz quickly reacted to head in a header after his rebounded shot was also brilliantly saved.

Tottenham did gain a foothold thanks to the presence of 20-year-old Pape Sarr and 22-year-old Oliver Skipp in the center of midfield. Eric Dier attempted a glancing header in response to Son Heung-free min's kick, but it was blocked by Milan goalkeeper Ciprian Tatarusanu.

Harry Kane then hit the rebound against the crossbar after Tatarusanu made a good save from Son, though a goal would have been called back for offside anyhow.

Spurs toiled in vain after the break, and Milan's decision to hold out for a smaller lead for the return leg in March was fortunate.

De Ketelaere missed the goal with a header after Olivier Giroud had nodded the ball back across the goal in quick succession, and then Tottenham was given another break when Thiaw missed the goal with an equally good opportunity.

Dier, who received a booking and will be suspended for the return leg, ought to have performed better with a chance at the other end, but Spurs shouldn't have many grievances with the result.

"In the second leg, I anticipate another challenging game. We should have performed better for their objective because there was a battle in front of a challenging environment "stated Conte.

"Remember that Milan won the league last year while we did not." he added.