As Chelsea welcomes AC Milan to Stamford Bridge for their Group E matchup on Wednesday, supporters will be hoping that the third time will prove to be the charm in the 2022–23 Champions League.

After two games without a victory, Graham Potter's team is in last place in the division, while the Rossoneri are in first place after accumulating four points from a possible six.

Conor Gallagher accepted the job after the screenplay was already prepared prior to the game. Chelsea defeated Crystal Palace 2-1 under the leadership of first-time Premier League referee Potter, who scored a beautiful goal while on loan from the Eagles.

Odsonne Edouard's goal in the seventh minute gave Palace the lead, but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's well-taken debut goal for Chelsea brought the visitors back into the game. Then, with time running out, Gallagher came off the bench to curl in an incredible winner.

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Potter's first match as Chelsea's manager concluded in a 1-1 draw with Red Bull Salzburg after the 1-0 loss to Dinamo Zagreb put the final nail in Thomas Tuchel's coffin. Now that he's made a winning start at home, his next goal is to stop Chelsea's winless streak in Europe.

The Blues will be determined to upset the status quo on Wednesday as they currently sit at the bottom of Group E with just one point. However, first-place Milan is just three points ahead at this early stage of the competition.

The last time Chelsea lost at home to Italian opposition in Europe was in March 2010 when they lost 1-0 to Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan. The hosts have gone eight games without a loss at Stamford Bridge, but they have also failed to keep a clean sheet in the same span of games in all competitions.

When AC Milan faced Empoli in Serie A over the weekend, the injury issue in Stefano Pioli's squad grew worse, but the Scudetto champions still won easily as they continue to play catch-up in the race to defend their Serie A title.

As the Rossoneri decisively got back on track, Fode Ballo-Toure, Rafael Leao, and Ante Rebic all scored goals. Some may view Wednesday's game as Leao's audition because he has been heavily linked with a move to Chelsea recently.

The 23-year-old has led the Rossoneri revolution after a rumored late approach from the Blues failed, helping his team to fourth place in the Serie A standings at the moment, even though Atalanta BC and Napoli are three points clear in the top two podium positions.

Pioli has seen his team tie with Salzburg and defeat Zagreb to hold the top spot in Group E of the Champions League. Like Chelsea, the Italian champions have recently displayed some defensive flaws, surrendering in six straight games across all competitions.

Milan, who had gone eight games without losing on the road, are now attempting to break their European curse on English soil. Their lone victory in these games came against Manchester United at Old Trafford in February 2005.

The Rossoneri's other 19 encounters with English clubs in continental competition resulted in seven draws and 12 losses for them, and they haven't faced Chelsea since the 1999–2000 Champions League group stage, when both games ended evenly.