AC Milan coach Pioli: Udinese deserved win; we were below standards

AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli says they weren't good enough after defeat to Udinese.

The Rossonero lost 3-1 with a limp performance.

It was a negative performance. When the team plays like this, neither aggressive, nor intense, nor precise or focused, it means the coach has worked badly in preparing the match. We were too far below our capabilities this evening," Pioli told Sky Italia.

You could say Ibra should've been higher, so should Leao, but ultimately this was overall a performance too low for our levels."

It would be a serious problem if we were already thinking about the quarter-final, especially as finishing in the top four is the main priority. No, it's just that we weren't playing at our level the last few games, and if we don't play at our level in terms of intensity, organisation and focus, we end up with performances like this.

I am certainly disappointed, because in recent weeks we haven't done well enough and haven't played to our standards. We have to raise the level in everything, because this was not a good performance at all."

He added, We played too slowly this evening, made too many errors, even without being pressed by the opposition. When Rebic and Krunic came on, we returned to a 4-2-3-1 formation, but trust me this was not an issue of tactics tonight. Too many times people talk about tactical systems rather than intensity and focus. We all can and must do better."