AC Milan manager Sergio Conceicao said his side lacked aggression as they missed the chance to secure automatic qualification for the Champions League's last 16 with a 2-1 loss to Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday.
A victory for Milan at Dinamo would have secured a top-eight finish, but a first-half red card for Yunus Musah left them on the back foot, resulting in a defeat that sent them into the knockout phase playoffs instead.
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"All the episodes of the match were against us," Conceicao told a press conference. "But with that, I don’t want to hide the lack of aggression in the first half. When the foundation is missing, it’s difficult. Football is made of constant defensive and offensive duels."
Conceicao admitted that his side lacked desire.
"We can talk about tactics, systems, dynamics, but at times we have seen – and this is not new – we have to be much, much more aggressive in the duels and present in the match," he said, adding that he saw some bright spots ahead of their Serie A clash at home against Inter Milan on Sunday.
"I liked the second half, we tried to win it down to 10 men. We didn’t manage it, now we have to focus on the next match and try to change this environment around us. We’ve got time to do that and we must do more."
With Milan's focus now shifting to both Serie A and the knockout stages of the Champions League, Conceicao remains confident that his side still can achieve success this season.
"I’ve had a conversation with the management to understand where we need to improve. We are looking for solutions that can help us, make us a little stronger," he said.
"We still have everything in our hands, both in the league and in the Champions League."