PIOLI: "LET'S SHOW WE ARE STRONG UNTIL THE END"

A tough test awaits the Rossoneri at the Olimpico against Lazio. Coach Pioli's side are in action on Monday night and will be hoping to make amends for a defeat last time out. Victory will also be vital for them to maintain their standings in the table. The Coach has spoken about all this and more in his press conference, which was broadcast live on the AC Milan Official App.

THE FINAL SPRINT
"We deserve to finish in the top four, the past 32 games have shown that we are the only team who have been able to hold our own against Inter in the long run: this allows us to approach the last six games ambitiously. We didn't come this far because we were kissed by the Goddess of fortune, but we now have to do our all until the very end. We thought that 75 points would be enough to qualify for the Champions League, but we never let that distract us. There might be some teams who will win all of the remaining games, or some could falter and lose their lead. At the moment, it's important to concentrate on every individual game to try and do our best. I have always maintained that there would be seven teams battling for the top four and those who don't make it will be disappointed."

 LAZIO
"The head-to-heads are worth double, we have three to play and for now tomorrow evening's is the only one that counts. Lazio have to improve their position in the league so it will be an important game for them, as well; those three points would be even more important. They are a strong side, we have already beaten them but it's always a tight game against them. We will definitely have the will and determination to play a great game." 

HOW AC MILAN ARE DOING
"We aren't physically tired, from that point of view we made one of our best performances last Wednesday. We need to be more effective in the final third, and that's no small thing: it can be the difference between whether you win games or not. It was hard to imagine that we could maintain that level of results. We need to be clear-headed and recognise that there was a point in the season when we brought home everything we could and more, but at the moment the opposite is the case. We have six games left to focus on an important objective." 

CONCERNING INJURIES
"Ibra is better now but he won't be playing tomorrow, he should feature against Benevento. Mario is definitely better, he will start alongside Leão: they both have the right attributes to help us in the opponent's half. Theo is better, he trained with the team yesterday and if he does a full session today then he might be selected tomorrow. Romagnoli trained well with the team and improved his fitness. Yesterday Tomori had a small problem, tomorrow we will see how he's doing."

IBRA AND RAFA
"Zlatan has raised the bar with regard to quality and character, his charisma has helped everyone grow. His teammates have been great at following his lead and growing with great consistency and will. We have become a top-tier team playing at a high level in a difficult league. Project Leão and his maturation continue, regardless of his role. It's difficult to predict what Rafa's role will be, a player's growth allows you to find solutions and roles that you would never have even imagined previously." 

BELIEVING IN OURSELVES UNTIL THE END
"We have overcome so many crash tests this season. I also think that Wednesday's performance, although it ended in defeat, as a coach you have to see the positive aspects: we spoke a little about the match against Sassuolo, and we immediately switched our focus to the following game. We played as a team for the full ninety minutes, I think that if we played that game from last Wednesday 100 times over, we would've only lost once. My players have strong tactics, mindset and morale. It would've been disingenuous to expect a good result without experiencing some difficulties, but we showed that in difficult times we know how to find that little bit extra. Our direct rivals are strong opponents, but as of today we are in a position to supersede all of them: we have a rule - we must play at our best, and we must respond."

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