Menez urges nice Milan to be naughtier
MILAN (Reuters) - Struggling AC Milan are too easy on opposition teams and need to be nastier, said forward Jeremy Menez on Monday.
"We seem to be too nice," the Frenchman told reporters. "We lack a little bit of malice because the true champions have this characteristic."
Milan, joint ninth in Serie A, have taken one point from four games since the Christmas break and have fallen eight points behind third place, the Champions League playoff spot.
They host Lazio in an Italian Cup quarter-final on Tuesday, three days after losing 3-1 to the same side in a league game.
The match is seen as crucial for coach Filippo Inzaghi whose future is the subject of media speculation after six months in the hot seat.
"The players are always with Inzaghi. I am not saying it for the sake of it but we all think it," said Menez.
"We cannot make mistakes tomorrow and we have to take to the pitch like lions because we cannot slip up.
"The Champions League spot is a little bit far away and for this reason the match tomorrow is very important. Progressing in the Italian Cup means we can hope in something perhaps even the Europa League."
(Writing by Brian Homewood, editing by Tony Jimenez)
