AC Milan target Champions League spot as season's salvation

ROME: AC Milan bid to bounce back from exiting the Champions League at the hands of city rivals Inter by beating relegated Sampdoria on Saturday (May 20) and keep alive hopes of qualifying for next season's competition.

AC Milan's blues are in stark contrast to the general mood in Serie A where Inter have led a trio of teams in qualifying for European club finals.

Roma and Fiorentina will feature in the Europa League and Europa Conference League finals in June.

Ordinarily Milan would be heavily favoured to beat Sampdoria, a side with just three wins this term.

However, Milan's lacklustre display against Inter - who won 3-0 on aggregate - in what was their first Champions League semi-final since 2007 reflected the crisis of confidence that has hit last year's champions.

Defeat to relegation-threatened Spezia last Saturday epitomised their poor form - Stefano Pioli's team have won only three times in their last 11 league matches.

The Spezia loss was Milan's 10th of a strange season in which their league title defence was all but over by February.

All is not lost, though, as in fifth spot they trail Lazio who are in the fourth and final Champions League place by four points with three games to play.

What would give Milan more pleasure is if they pipped Inter to the final place - their Champions League conquerors are five points better off.

Inter, however, travel to champions Napoli on Sunday whilst Lazio are away at mid-table Udinese.

Milan's technical director Paolo Maldini is as unflappable in his administrative role as he was as a defender in the great AC Milan side of the 1990's.

Now 54 Maldini is relaxed about the direction he and Pioli have decided to take the club, mixing old warhorses like Olivier Giroud with younger ones with