Ancelotti confident of qualification

Ancelotti confident of qualification
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Source: Football Italia

Carlo Ancelotti claims Milan should’ve had a last-gasp penalty against PSV, but insists they are on track to qualify.

“Everyone thought it was a pretty clear penalty and he went straight for the man, totally ignoring the ball, but we have to accept the result and realise we have a very good chance of through this round,” he said after their 1-0 defeat in Eindhoven. “We will qualify and are satisfied with the effort we put in tonight.”

The incident saw defender Lamey hold back Serginho as he ran into the area, but English referee Graham Poll waved play on.

This defeat comes just days after the Rossoneri crushed Serie A leaders Juventus 3-1 and was a markedly inferior outing.

“I don’t think this was a step back, as it was a very different game and we went behind early on, doing everything possible to get back into it. Obviously there are regrets, but this was not a bad Milan performance.”

Milan have now picked up just one point from their last two Champions League games against PSV, failing to score a single goal, and conceded Jefferson Farfan’s early goal after a double error from Kakha Kaladze and Dida.

“After the goal, PSV focused only on defending and counter-attacking, which made it even more difficult for us to find space. Against Juve we were the ones who took the lead and could therefore control the tempo, but here we had to pour forward and run a few more risks, but we attacked for 90 minutes.”

Guus Hiddink also troubled Ancelotti last season, when only an away goal allowed Milan to qualify for the Champions League Final.

“Hiddink has a very simple way of playing football, man-marking all around the field and then concentrating on the counter-attack,” explained the tactician.

The Rossoneri have now slipped to third place in Group E. It’s a very balanced selection of teams, as PSV are on seven points, Milan and Schalke on five and Fenerbahce – the Italians’ next opponents in Istanbul – have four.

“We have two games left and will try to win both of them, even if I doubt that will even be necessary considering the situation in the Group.”

of course he should be, we're second in the group. win and a draw will be enough.

Actually, we currently lie 3rd in the group...after all, we only scored 5 goals, conceding 4. Sheva quite accurately stated that we should strive for 2 wins, anything less and we dont deserve qualification.

Sheva faces Istanbul curse Thursday 3 November, 2005

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Andriy Shevchenko realises Milan must face their demons in Istanbul, as anything less than a win at Fenerbahce could put their Euro campaign in doubt.

“The defeat in Eindhoven complicated matters,” he confessed after the 1-0 defeat at PSV. “At this stage, if we don’t win our final two matches then it would only be right that we fail to qualify.”


Nonetheless, there were recriminations from the San Siro camp after a debatable late penalty shout for Serginho was ignored by Graham Poll.


“The referee whistled in PSV’s favour all night and I was close to the penalty incident, so I can confirm it was clear,” explained the Ukrainian. “PSV are a side that defend a great deal and wait for their opponents without running too many risks. We had our chances to score, but it wasn’t easy against a team that clammed up like that.”


The Rossoneri slipped down to third place in Group E after picking up just two points from their last three games against Schalke 04 and PSV. Their final two clashes are away to Fenerbahce on November 23 and at home to Schalke.


“We must win to qualify, but also to prove that we are a great side that can aim for the Champions League trophy. It will be an important trip to Istanbul, but we must stop talking about this so-called curse. We didn’t make any huge mistakes against PSV and tried to score an equaliser until the end, but we didn’t manage it and will make up for that in the next game.”


Milan’s fate is once again set to be decided in Istanbul, the city where they lost the Champions League Final against Liverpool in May. Shevchenko is working his way back to full fitness after suffering from a heel injury and played the final minutes of their PSV defeat.


“I tried to do what I could and now hope to be fully recovered for this weekend’s Serie A tie with Udinese. I still have pain and cannot play 90 minutes.”


http://www.channel4.com/sport/footba...lia/nov3b.html

Originally Posted by Dil dil

Ancelotti confident of qualification
2.11 || webmaster || $source

Carlo Ancelotti claims Milan should’ve had a last-gasp penalty against PSV, but insists they are on track to qualify.

milan should not have to rely on last gasp penalties to beat PSV

I like Carlo´s confidence, which regardless of whether or not he actually feels that way personally, is the only face to present to the team, the fans and the press.

I however, remain in two minds about our future in the UCL, not only in leaving the group stage, but also in the knock out portion of the competition.

All this despite our wonderful victory over Udine, but as their previous UCL result (a 4-3 loss away to Weder Bremen) highlights, this competition is unforgiving, and challenging at every point (unless you are Barca, playing Olympiakos )

Milan have nightmares to overcome, and to ask that we do so, in a match that (somehow, someway, dont ask me why) I feel Vieri may get a start, in Turkey, and in Istanbul, needing a point, or as Sheva insists, a win, is a big ask.

Is it a bigger ask than Milan can deliver? HELL NO! We are Milan, AC MILAN, the best club in the world (with Chelsea and Barca running close third and second respectively) and fear no club, no stadium, and no set of fans.

But, our players are human, and so is the ref. How well he will be able to remain objective when faced with the horde of Fener fans is open to speculation.

All in all, I remain uncomfortable about our UCL prospects, but go on hoping that we will vanquish our "Darth Vader" by using the force, to overcome a tricky Fener in Istanbul, and a strong Schalke in the San Siro.

Though in all honesty, I should be more confident, as we should be able to replicate our form vs Udinese vs any other team in the world....but our aging backline, the fitness of our midfielders, and the sharpness of our forwards come end November, will be the determining factors in our progress to the knockout stages. (Not to mention our coach´s team selection! )

Then bring on round 2...where I am a tad bit more confident that we will excell, of course depending on the who we face.

Who do I fear? No team really. I think, that on our day, we can beat them all, I just hope that when we face them, that it is our day, not theirs.

Originally Posted by Pablo I

Actually, we currently lie 3rd in the group...after all, we only scored 5 goals, conceding 4. Sheva quite accurately stated that we should strive for 2 wins, anything less and we dont deserve qualification.

uefa.com begs to differ Pablo, where they show us second in the group...unless they are using the alphabet to determine who is second...

Actually, we are tied with Schalke, and that is the bottom line. While mathematics state that we need 4 points, I also agree with the last line of your quoted post above: we should strive for 2 wins, anything less and we dont deserve qualification...that said, I would take 4 points and qualification and run with it any day!