Esurance AC Milan Primavera vs. Timbers, June 19, PGE Park, 7 p.m. presented by Peroni Italy
Italian club AC Milan, the parent team of the Portland Timbers’ next exhibition opponent, is busy preparing to face one of England’s most successful clubs, Liverpool, in the European Champions League final Wednesday, May 23, at the Athens Olympic Stadium in Athens, Greece.
The Timbers are scheduled to play AC Milan Primavera, the U-21 team of Champions League finalist AC Milan, on June 19 at PGE Park at 7 p.m.
The 2007 Champions League final features a rematch of the 2005 final when Liverpool defeated AC Milan 6-5 on penalties. AC Milan’s last Champion’s League title was in 2003 with a shootout win over Juventus.
To get to the Champions League final, AC Milan, which is currently fourth in Italy’s Serie A, defeated some of the best clubs in Europe, including Scotland’s Celtic FC, Germany’s Bayern Munich and England’s Manchester United. AC Milan has won six UEFA Champions League titles since 1963.
AC Milan’s opponent, Liverpool has won more England Football Association (FA) Cups than any other team and won the 2005-06 FA Cup. Liverpool is currently in third place in the English Premier League – England’s top tier.
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Champions League is a seasonal competition for the most successful clubs in Europe. The top teams from most European leagues including England’s Football Association (FA), Italy’s Serie A and Spain’s La Liga are entered into the elite tournament. The prize, the European Champion Clubs' Cup, is considered the most prestigious club trophy in the sport.
AC MILAN PRIMAVERA 2006-07 SEASON RECAP
AC Milan Primavera finished its 2006-07 season in late April with a record of 16-4-6 (54pts), second place behind rival Inter Milan by only two points.
Leading the team in scoring was 18 year-old forward
Davide Di Gennaro
with 14 goals. The Primavera squad has a set of brothers, forwards
Willy
, 20, and
Pierre Aubameyang
, 18, who together scored a total of 20 goals during the season. Willy made an appearance with AC Milan’s first team and scored a goal against Juventus in a friendly early in the 2006-07 season.
Starting goalkeeper
Davide Facchin
, 20, compiled a 12-4-2 record, had seven shutouts and allowed only 15 goals in 18 matches. Facchin was called up by AC Milan to be a back up between November and January of the 2006-07 season.
Both Aubameyang bothers and Facchin are scheduled to make the trip with AC Milan Primavera on their U.S. Tour, arranged by International Sports Events, in June to play the Timbers and Minnesota Thunder.
The Esurance Timbers vs. AC Milan Primavera (U-21) match presented by Peroni Italy is June 19, at PGE Park at 7 p.m.
Starting at $17, tickets for the AC Milan Primavera match are available at the PGE Park box office, area Ticketmaster outlets, www.ticketmaster.com and by phone at (503) 244-4400. Discounted group tickets and ticket packages are available by calling (503) 553-5555.
