AC Milan Loses Again, Fonseca Still Believes In League Champion

AC Milan remains confident that the Italian League champions, even though they are already 11 points behind with the leaders of the Napoli standings. (acmilan.com)

JAKARTA - AC Milan are already 11 points behind Napoli who beat them 2-0 in the Italian Serie A match. However, coach Paulo Fonseca remains confident Milan can catch Napoli who are getting stronger at the top of the standings.

The important thing is to believe. That's what Fonseca thought even though Milan lost at home at the San Siro Stadium, Wednesday, October 30, 2024 in the morning WIB.

Yes, the defeat in the home match was clearly a big loss for Milan. In that big match, Milan's goal conceded through Romelu Lukaku's quick goal. Furthermore, Khvica Kvaratskhelia solidified the advantage of I Partenopei.

The victory that confirmed the position of Antonio Conte's team at the top of the standings with 25. They are already seven points ahead with Inter Milan who are in second place.

The result thwarted Milan from closing points with the teams above it. Not only that. Their ranking in the standings continues to decline.

This is also Milan's third defeat in domestic competitions. Previously, Rafael Leao et al had to admit the superiority of Parma and Fiorentina which made Milan slump to eighth by pocketing 14. The same as Torino, but Milan's goal difference was still better than his rivals.

When asked about Milan's chance to win, Fonseca said he remained confident. Moreover, Milan should not lose. They lost a number of the best players, including Theo Hernandez and Tijjani Reijnders, who were banned from playing in the match against Napoli.

"I can't cover it up. Especially when I see how our game is and how players respond when facing difficult situations. Likewise, they show that they remain united even without pillar players," said Fonseca.

According to him, there is no team that has confirmed the championship during the new competition to play nine matches. This makes the belief of the former AS Roma coach unsteady.

"No team has confirmed a league title after nine matches. And not a single team has failed after nine matches. So, we have to keep trying to maintain the path we have built. We obviously need results to keep competing," he said again.

Fonseca admitted that the defeat was his responsibility. Only, according to Fonseca, it was not easy for Milan to catch up when they missed a goal in a game that had only been running for five minutes.

"I am responsible for what happened on the pitch. However, it must be admitted that we did a difficult start because we had conceded a goal from Napoli in the fifth minute. If they saw the result, they did score two goals. But we actually created many chances," said Fonseca.

"The team showed a good reaction. We showed quality performances. It was not easy to face a team like Napoli. They defended very well in front of the penalty area," he said.

After facing Napoli, Milan visited Monza's headquarters. Next, they face a tough opponent, Real Madrid in the Champions League.