Allegri shifts focus to top four race following Supercoppa elimination
Massimiliano Allegri urged AC Milan fans to remain composed, emphasizing that his squad needs to concentrate on their main aim of securing a top-four finish in Serie A. Allegri’s remarks followed the Rossoneri’s exit from the Supercoppa Italiana semi-finals on Thursday, where they were defeated 2-0 by Napoli at Al-Awwal Park. David Neres gave Antonio Conte’s side the lead just six minutes prior to halftime, and shortly after the hour, Rasmus Højlund sealed the victory with a superb finish. Milan has now trailed in each of their last four competitive fixtures after only trailing in two instances during their first 15 games this season across all tournaments. Allegri and his players will return to Italy to prepare for their concluding match of 2025 against Hellas Verona on December 28, aiming to sustain their strong start in the league. Currently, Milan sits second in the Serie A table, just a point behind rivals Inter, who are set to face Bologna in the other Supercoppa Italiana semi-final on Friday. When questioned about the possibility of reverting to a back four, Allegri called for patience while also clarifying his team’s goals for the upcoming months. “One match can’t overturn three months of work,” Allegri stated during his post-match press briefing. “We need to reflect on our situation with clarity. Only maintaining calm will help us reach our goal, which is finishing in the top four.” The Opta supercomputer forecasts an 83.4% likelihood of Milan finishing in the Serie A top four in its season projections, with a 16.6% chance of missing Champions League qualification.
Defeat in the Supercoppa. pic.twitter.com/IrSnqcTjP7
— AC Milan (@acmilan) December 18, 2025
Milan created opportunities during the match, accumulating an expected goals (xG) total of 1.28 from their 14 attempts, although only three of those forced Vanja Milinkovic-Savic to make a save. Yet, Allegri expressed his disappointment regarding the simplicity with which Napoli found the back of the net, as Neres had an easy tap-in following Mike Maignan’s failure to handle Hojlund’s cross. Koni De Winter struggled against Hojlund’s pace and strength as the Dane netted Napoli’s second goal, with Allegri admitting that Napoli was the superior team on the day. “We faced a formidable Napoli, and we anticipated this,” the Milan head coach remarked. “We could have performed better on the two goals.” “It was a well-contested match from both sides, but they defended more effectively and merited the win. We had promising moments and handled the ball relatively well. We needed to penetrate the box more intelligently. When mistakes occur on goals like the first, we have to defend more solidly. When you concede two goals in three successive matches that ought to have been prevented, you must evaluate how to improve.” The outcome also marked the first time Milan experienced a defeat without scoring and conceding at least two goals across all competitions since a 2-0 loss to Juventus in January.
Published: 2025-12-18 23:06:00
source: www.soccernews.com
