It hasn’t been the best start for Bournemouth in the league so far, but they have fared much better in Europe.

They started with a 2-1 win over Real Sociedad, before securing a 3-0 victory over Sturm Graz last time out.

With six points from their opening two Europa League matches, the Cherries are battling near the top of the standings, and they will hope to maintain that positive record.

However, they face a tough test against a real European heavyweight.

AC Milan beat Atalanta 3-2 at the weekend, and they have only lost one game all season.

There isn’t much to split the two teams, and they both look strong going forward.

Bournemouth have picked up 21 cards in seven Premier League matches - only Hull and Brentford have been shown more bookings this season.

That trend has continued for their midweek matches, as the Cherries were given three yellow cards against Sturm Graz in their last European outing, despite that being quite a comfortable 3-0 win.

Even against Real Sociedad in round one of the Europa League, Bournemouth picked up three yellow cards.

This matchup against AC Milan looks to be their toughest yet, so cards remain a target.

When the Rossoneri came up against Benfica in round one, the Portuguese side were shown five yellow cards.

AC Milan are not short of attacking talent that will cause problems for Bournemouth.

Alphadjo Cisse has adapted seamlessly since completing a move from Catanzo, and he bagged himself a hat-trick during Milan’s 4-0 win over Salzburg in their last European match.

Cisse had four shots in that game before being replaced after 60 minutes, and all of his efforts hit the target.

Cisse has only started five matches this season, but he already has five goals to his name.

He is clinical when chances fall to his feet, and his form at the moment could not be better.

Because of that, he is one to keep an eye on in the final third.

On the opposite side, Evanilson is the danger man for Bournemouth.

The Brazilian was a standout performer at the weekend as his side beat Sunderland 2-0.

Evanilson was brought down by Kevin Danso to get the centre back sent off, before then capitalising on an error to score in the second half.

That was Evanilson’s third goal in as many games - he also scored a wonderful looping header against Sturm Graz in his last European match. 

The Bournemouth striker is averaging 2.81 shots per 90 across all competitions this season, and he has landed this selection in each of his last five starts.

Evanilson has contributed more than just goals for his side this season.

He is the one who leads the press from the front, and he is always looking to get on the ball to make life difficult for opposing centre backs.

In fact, he is averaging 2.32 fouls drawn per 90 this season, which is one of the highest figures in the squad.

He has won multiple fouls in seven of his nine starts overall, and Strahinja Pavlovic will be directly up against him on Wednesday night. 

The Serbian international registered four fouls against Benfica in round one of the league phase, which earned him a booking.

He has landed this selection in five of his nine starts this campaign, but this is an ideal matchup to improve that hit rate.

It hasn’t been the best start for Bournemouth in the league so far, but they have fared much better in Europe.

They started with a 2-1 win over Real Sociedad, before securing a 3-0 victory over Sturm Graz last time out.

With six points from their opening two Europa League matches, the Cherries are battling near the top of the standings, and they will hope to maintain that positive record.

However, they face a tough test against a real European heavyweight.

AC Milan beat Atalanta 3-2 at the weekend, and they have only lost one game all season.

There isn’t much to split the two teams, and they both look strong going forward.

Beşiktaş have scored in every home game this season and are averaging an impressive 20 shots per match.

Their two Europa League wins have been pretty entertaining too, beating Marseille 4-1 at home and Hoffenheim 3-2 away, with 37 shots across those two games.

The problem is at the back. They haven't managed a clean sheet in their last five games and have allowed at least 10 shots in each of them.

Crystal Palace have the worst defence in the Premier League and conceded three goals to Lyon in their only Europa League away game so far.

Going forward, though, they've looked much better in Europe, scoring six goals in their first two games. They even managed more shots than Lyon in France.

Dušan Vlahović and Yéremy Pino have been in good form lately, with each scoring three goals in their last five games, and both are available.

That gives us even more reason to expect goals from both sides on Thursday.

Hoffenheim just can't seem to keep the goals out. They haven't managed a single clean sheet in the Bundesliga or Europa League this season.

Things get even worse at home, where they've conceded three goals in three of their four games.

The good news is that they've also scored twice in every home game, meaning BTTS has landed in all of them.

Lyon have seen BTTS in four of their last five games and have already shown they can score away from home.

They beat Anderlecht 2-1 in the Europa League and also scored against Fenerbahçe and Sparta Praha in the Champions League qualifiers.

Hoffenheim are averaging 17 shots at home, but they're also allowing 15 per game and have an xGA of 1.93.

With Hoffenheim putting up such strong attacking numbers but struggling so much defensively, we could be in for another entertaining game with goals from both sides.