Former AC Milan defender Alessandro Nesta has sought to contextualise the current struggles that Stefano Pioli’s side are experiencing as they juggle Serie A and Champions League commitments.

Speaking to Sky Sport Italia (via Radio Rossonera), the Milan legend was asked about the inconsistent form that Milan are showing at the moment and what could be the cause for it.

He immediately referenced the injuries that have been piling up for Pioli: “I see a little difficulty. The squad was short due to injuries. Inter and Juventus are opponents to fight against until the end for the Scudetto and we need the full squad.”

Another reason that Nesta offered, specifically for the 2-2 draw against Lecce at the weekend, was the difficulty in motivating effectively for a league game so soon after a huge match like the one against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League. This is something Nesta says his sides struggled with when he was playing.

“It’s never easy to recharge your batteries after a night like the one against PSG, it also happened in my time to lose points in the league after certain Champions League evenings,” he said.

Milan went 2-0 up against Lecce in the first half but still ending up dropping two points, whilst Inter and Juventus both won their games.

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