AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli says there were no excuses for defeat to Spezia.

The setback leaves Milan outside the top four.

“We lacked consistency during the game, we needed a higher tempo," Pioli told DAZN.

“It was a balanced match, the first half was alright, but we lost our way in the second. It was not a performance suited to our capabilities.

“We are playing a game that can allow us to enter the history books. We must believe that we can beat Inter, but clearly only if we play our football with a level of focus, energy and quality. We have not been up to our standards in the last two games, we can play much better.

“Naturally, the Champions League is on our minds and it is normal to be disappointed by the first leg, but we also knew how important today was. This result complicates our future, so it means we need an even better performance on Tuesday.

“There aren't many more opportunities left to make this a positive season. We must believe that we've got a chance of beating Inter."