Stefano Pioli urges Milan to “believe that we have what it takes” to beat Juventus and reach the Coppa Italia Final, even without many star names.
The first leg ended 1-1 at San Siro and the decider for a place in the Final is on Wednesday at 20.00 GMT.
“That result gives our opponents a slight advantage, but it was a good performance where we proved that we’re on a par with Juventus,” Pioli told Milan TV.
“We must absolutely prepare for this game with the same mentality, believing to the end that we have what it takes to trouble them to the very end.
“Not just in the Coppa Italia, but also in Serie A, we’ve put in far stronger performances in 2020, even against the best teams in the league. It’s crucial that we continue fuelling this belief.
“That also means not feeling regret over those who cannot play, but concentrating on our own characteristics and qualities, being a real team. The lads are in good shape and I am convinced we can do it.”
Gianluigi Donnarumma is out injured, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Samu Castillejo and Theo Hernandez suspended, although Simon Kjaer should return in defence.
“The fact we have to do this without Ibra should be further motivation,” insisted Pioli. “We all know Zlatan made a huge contribution since his arrival. The others might have different characteristics, but they can be the right ones to trouble our opponents.
“In all our games against Juventus this season, we were in no way inferior, but details make the difference to a result. If you drop off concentration for just a moment, you pay for that against players of such quality.”
The Coppa Italia could even end up being Milan’s best route towards Europa League qualification.
“It is a very important objective, a trophy, a guarantee of a place in Europe… You just have to look at the fact the four semi-finalists are Juventus, Inter, Napoli and Milan, the biggest clubs in the league. Now we must make that final step.
“The remaining 13 Serie A games and tomorrow’s Coppa Italia result will decide whether or not we have had a good season. We cannot let ourselves be distracted by situations that are out of our control.”
Milan’s game with Genoa was called off at the weekend due to the Coronavirus outbreak, while fans from the Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna and Veneto regions are banned from travelling to Turin for the Coppa Italia semi-final.
“It has not been easy to go through these days without football, as we were preparing the Genoa game and then at the last minute, it wasn’t even played. It’s part of the job and hopefully we can all get back to playing in front of our fans, on equal terms.”
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