Milan hope for improvement in derby clash after recent slump in form

MILAN : AC Milan coach Sergio Conceicao hopes his side can overcome their recent difficulties when they host Inter Milan in Serie A on Sunday, having already beaten their rivals twice this season.

Milan defeated Inter 2-1 in September in the league before a last-gasp 3-2 win in the Italian Super Cup in January.

However, Milan have lost two of their last four games in all competitions, including a shock 2-1 defeat at Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League on Wednesday that saw them miss out on an automatic last-16 spot and go into the playoffs.

"There is a lot to improve," Conceicao told a press conference on Saturday. "We have to work to have the base.

"As a coach I always have my bags packed, because a coach's (life is) like that," added the 50-year-old Portuguese who joined Milan at the end of December after leaving Porto in June.

Conceicao started with a four-match unbeaten run, winning three of the games before a 2-0 loss at Juventus in mid-January.

"In (the Super Cup final in) Riyadh the players understood well that positive energy, a sparkle in their eyes was needed to play like children. That's what I mean when I talk about passion and desire. This is what I try to convey," Conceicao said.

"(But) in terms of the game, we are still very far from what I want. I like a compact team that presses high, with a very high intensity, that creates a lot offensively.

"You ask me if I have the players to play this game. At the moment I say no. This is why we play differently ... And this is not an excuse, because when I came here I already knew it."

PLAYOFFS BECKON

Milan started their final Champions League first phase game in sixth place after a five-match winning streak in the competition but finished 13th after the defeat by Zagreb.