PIOLI: "IT'S ALMOST ALL OR NOTHING"

After Cremonese and before the derby, there's another game to be played at San Siro: AC Milan v Lazio, a vital match in the race to finish in the top four. Coach Pioli, who was once in charge of tomorrow's visitors, talked about the upcoming showdown in his pre-match press conference. This is what we had to say:

NAPOLI'S SCUDETTO
"Congratulations to Napoli, the club, Spalletti and the players. They've thoroughly deserved to win the league and played the best football. Their celebrations brought us back to what happened last year, and we're hoping for a repeat in the future."

PERFORMANCES AND RESULTS
"In our last six league matches, the team have generally controlled proceedings and dominated more than they did before, but we've only managed to pick up two wins and four draws. We've deserved more, but something has been missing in the opposition box. Against Lazio, I hope that the team once again control the match while, at the same time, being more clinical and effective in front of goal." 

POSITIVES
"I always think positively and liked what I saw in the first half against Cremonese. Then, our performance declined after the changes; we took up different positions and got nervous."

FINAL OPPORTUNITY
"The team are aware of the points we've thrown away and that we can't afford to slip up much more. It's an important match, almost a knockout game, but it also isn't the last one. We need many points. I know what I'm doing and why, and I know how to take responsibility. The draws have arrived with different kinds of teams. The team are doing well but haven't been coming away with wins. We need to do better, starting from the next one. We have to be precise and determined." 

LAZIO
"We're facing second in the league who have taken an upturn since going out of the cup competitions they were involved in. They are very strong in the central areas, and then like to go out wide. From our side, we'll need to stay very compact defensively." 

THE NEW ACQUISITIONS
"They have the right quality to be important players for us. At times, they have taken their opportunities and in others they haven't. As long as I see desire and willingness, I will always back my players."

SPIRIT IN THE GROUP
"They are in good spirits, there's no worry or fear around. I seem them working hard, concentrated and determined. We work for results at the end of the day, and we're not happy We have created high expectations so we can't smile at the current situation. We need to work better and that's what we're searching for. The Club and its management are always supporting us; we all know that this month is a massive one in the season and we're all focused on making it the best one."

EUROPE AND DOMESTIC CAMPAIGNS
"Every season is different. Last year, we ended up winning an exceptional league, we started this one off with the intention of defending the title and it would have been unbelievable had we done so. Last year, we improved after going out of the Champions League, while this year we're having an outstanding European campaign. The sticky patch we had around January set our Scudetto hopes back, with only Machester City, out of the European semi-finalists, still having a chance of winning a double: the Champions League and the league title. We're not quite at that level yet." 

ANTETOKOUNPO AND FAILURE
"I completely agree with him from one side. I loved how he came across in his explanation. Obviously, only one team can win and the word 'failure' is a negative one. But if you start out with the idea to win then if you dont, there's always disappointement in the end."

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