After the 0-1 defeat against AS Roma in the Europa League first leg fixture of the quater-final, AC Milan's boss, Stefano Pioli, said these words to Sky Sport Italia's microphones:
"It wasn't the usual Milan... We had some difficulties in the first half. We should have been more courageous in our off-the-ball choices and we left too much space between the lines. They created a couple of sensations but we conceded a goal from a corner kick. Then we played the game, probably not with the clarity we had lately. A draw would have been fair. There's another game, and I believe the team can sort things out."
On Daniele De Rossi's choices:
"We didn't expect El Shaarawy on the right but it didn't change anything: Theo and Rafa found less space but we created more on the right. We created chances and had many shots but lacked quality. In the second half, I liked the team more, more compact. Of course, we need to take risks: we played the game there but lacked that spark."
On the lackluster performance of some big players, does it worry you?
"It doesn't worry me. On the contrary, I expect a lot of pride and will to show that we are a great team. It won't be easy to overturn, only truly strong teams do that. I told the guys that if there's a team that can do it, it's us."
On the missing courage, in what sense?
"We had set up to be aggressive with Giroud and Leao on Roma's center-backs, and we knew Dybala would go behind our midfielders to create numerical superiority. At the beginning, we held Lukaku's two-on-one with our defenders for too long and by not breaking, we forced Bennacer and Reijnders into a two-on-three situation. We went high but weren't aggressive. In the second half, we did better. We need to play better: it's not a feat if we know how we play. We played a decent game but not a great one, but we have the qualities to do it next Thursday."
On refereeing issues:
"I prefer talking about football, but it seemed to me that there was an offside that led to the corner kick. Then, Abraham wanted to head the ball but then touched it with his hand."
Do you need to improve communication too? Pioli answered:
"Definitely yes. Communication is part of a team's organization. Getting things sorted out, reacting in difficulty. In that situation, Loftus should have tightened up."
On substitutions made too late:
"Because Leao and Pulisic are confident players, from whom you can expect important plays even on not-so-good nights. In the second half, we were playing the game but lacked the spark. I made the substitutions when I thought it was right."
