[novfan]

Ancelotti stays defiant, ‘Winter break will do us good’

MILAN: AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti refused to rule his side out of the Serie A title race after a 4-2 defeat at Juventus on Sunday.

Milan, who were without the injured Kaka, Mathieu Flamini and Gennaro Gattuso, are now nine points behind leaders Inter Milan and three behind second-placed Juve after 16 games.

The Rossoneri, only fifth last season, host faltering Udinese next weekend before a mid-season break when David Beckham joins on loan from Los Angeles Galaxy.

“I think there will definitely be a reaction to this defeat.

“The winter break will be useful as we will get some players back,” former Juve boss Ancelotti told Sky.

“From a defensive point of view, we gave them too much. We started the game really well.

“We’ve had a lot of injuries and been without some important players.”

Brazilian-born striker Amauri, signed for €22.8mil (US$30.3mil) from Palermo in the close season having played for Chievo among others, grabbed two of Juve’s goals.

Juve coach Claudio Ranieri was thrilled with the 28-year-old, who is waiting for an Italian passport and may make himself available for Italy boss Marcello Lippi having never been called up by Brazil.

“I expected it as the club paid lots of money for him. Amauri arrived at the right time, he has gained experience around Italy and has matured before joining us. He is doing great things,” Ranieri beamed.

“We knew Milan would start strongly and we suffered a lot in the first 10 minutes but I had faith.” — Reuters

[MizNelson]

Carlo Ancelotti's Heart Belongs To AC Milan, Not Chelsea
The Milan boss reiterates his desire to stay at the San Siro...
28 Feb 2009 20:21:21

AC Milan manager Carlo Ancelotti has vowed to honour his contract with the club, rather than leave to manage Chelsea in the summer as many are expecting him to do.

The 49-year-old's contract ends in 2010 and it is thought that the club will not be renewing it when it runs out, with former Brazilian star Leonardo set to take charge at the San Siro.

Ancelotti's Milan have struggled in the last couple of seasons, only managing to qualify for the UEFA Cup last season and being knocked out by German side Werder Bremen earlier this week.

That result has left Ancelotti's job on a knife edge, and speculation has suggested that Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is ready to employ him as manager of the Blues next season when Guus Hiddink's short-term contract runs out.

Ancelotti remains committed to getting Milan into the Champions League for next season, and he refused to comment on the possibility of his taking over at Chelsea.

Speaking to Setanta Sports, Ancelotti said, "I’ve been hearing my name linked to other teams for five years.
"As a consequence, it’s not a surprise to hear all those whispers, but my desire is to stay at Milan.

"From now on the team will do everything to qualify for the next Champions League.

"You can feel their motivation when you stare the players in the eyes."

The former Juventus coach is one of a number of big-hitters linked to the job at Stamford Bridge, with many fans hoping that Jose Mourinho will be heading back to London.

This latest fecal material brought to you by Goal.com. Sorry, Jack, he's called "former Juventus coach" in this one as well.

This post has been edited by MizNelson: Mar 1 2009, 06:55 AM