Stefano Pioli warned his Milan players they cannot just sit back and defend their 1-0 first-leg lead at Tottenham in the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday.

Pioli's men take a narrow advantage to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the second leg after Brahim Diaz's first goal since October put them ahead at San Siro.

Milan will return to the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time since the 2011-12 season if they avoid defeat, though Pioli cautioned his players not to sit back and just focus on defending on Wednesday.

"Tomorrow is the match of personalities," Pioli told reporters at his pre-match news conference. "Our opponents are formidable from an offensive point of view, they will play with great intensity.

"We must be prepared to control the game more. We have a very small advantage but we cannot think of managing it. We must attack and play with intensity."

Pioli is expecting a great atmosphere in north London, though is confident his team can focus on the task ahead of them, saying: "We expect a loud stadium, just like San Siro was.

"But the crowd doesn't score goals. We arrive with confidence, enthusiasm and determination."

Spurs have been boosted ahead of the game by the return of head coach Antonio Conte, who had been recovering in Italy after undergoing gallbladder surgery.

Pioli acknowledged the importance of Conte being on the sidelines for Spurs, and feels his team will have to match the Premier League side's intensity to secure their progression.

"Antonio Conte's presence on the bench will be an added value for Tottenham," Pioli added. "But beyond Conte, we will find a highly prepared and motivated opponent.

"Both teams want to go through this round. Tottenham will probably try to attack more than at San Siro. We have to watch out for particular moments."

Stefano Pioli insisted Milan did not already have their eyes on their Champions League clash with Tottenham after a deserved defeat at Fiorentina.

Milan saw a three-game winning run in Serie A come to an abrupt end after Nicolas Gonzalez and Luka Jovic inflicted a 2-1 defeat, despite Theo Hernandez's well-taken late strike on Saturday.

That left the Rossoneri's top-four hopes in danger with fifth-placed Roma able to move level on points with victory at home to Juventus on Sunday.

Milan visit Tottenham with a slender 1-0 lead ahead of the second leg of their Champions League last-16 clash on Wednesday, though Pioli refused suggestions that match impacted the Rossoneri at Fiorentina.

When asked by Sky Sport Italia if Milan were already thinking about Tottenham, Pioli said: "No no no, that was absolutely not the case.

"Fiorentina played better than us, but not because we were thinking of Tottenham.

"We never thought of Tottenham. We had to do things better. It was a defeat that we didn't want."

Milan had reeled off four straight wins across all competitions without conceding, aiming for just a fifth instance in their history of winning five in a row without their defence being breached.

That never came to fruition after Fiorentina were in the ascendancy from the start at the Stadio Artemio Franchi, where Pioli acknowledged Milan were slow to get going.

"We prepared the match as if it were very important. Fiorentina did better than us in the first half in terms of quality and energy," he added.

"We did better in the second half but the first half was not played well and we were punished."

Only Cremonese, Sampdoria and Salernitana (all six) have lost more Serie A matches than Milan's four in 2023, though Pioli expects the Rossoneri to respond when they travel to Tottenham.

"It will be a different match because tonight's match doesn't count," he continued. "It will be two teams that will play at their best; Milan will certainly be ready."

Milan saw their Serie A top-four hopes dealt a blow after Nicolas Gonzalez and Luka Jovic proved the difference in a 2-1 win for Fiorentina on Saturday.

Stefano Pioli's side had reeled off three straight league wins but came unstuck at Stadio Artemio Franchi with an underwhelming display.

Gonzalez's 49th-minute penalty was no less than Vincenzo Italiano's hosts deserved before substitute Jovic put the game beyond Milan, despite Theo Hernandez's stoppage-time strike.

Defeat left Pioli's men 18 points adrift of runaway leaders Napoli and looking over their shoulders at fifth-placed Roma, who could move level with victory against Juventus on Sunday.

Fiorentina were unable to reap the rewards of their first-half dominance against a Milan defence that had not conceded since February 5.

Giacomo Bonaventura was a constant threat against his former side, with Mike Maignan pushing away his free-kick and Fikayo Tomori clearing the midfielder's bobbling close-range finish off the line.

Milan offered little in response yet Pietro Terracciano still had to be alert to thwart Olivier Giroud's inventive left-footed volley.

Fiorentina's pressure told after the interval, though. Tomori dragged down Jonathan Ikone inside the area and Gonzalez rolled into the bottom-right corner from 12 yards.

An apparent Arthur Cabral handball seemed to offer Milan late hope, but the referee overturned his original penalty decision.

Jovic then headed in from Dodo's right-wing cross soon after, rendering Hernandez's subsequent thumping left-footed effort a mere consolation in a disappointing Milan defeat.

Stefano Pioli credited Zlatan Ibrahimovic for his influence on Milan's squad as he suggested the fit-again striker will soon be able to make his first start of the season.

Having undergone anterior cruciate ligament surgery shortly after helping Milan end an 11-year wait to win the Scudetto last May, Ibrahimovic made his first appearance of the campaign last week.

Ibrahimovic entered the fray as a substitute as Milan beat fellow top-four contenders Atalanta 2-0 at San Siro, recording their fourth consecutive victory without conceding across all competitions.

Asked what kind of involvement Ibrahimovic may have when Milan visit Fiorentina on Saturday, Pioli said: "Not full playing time, but he will soon be able to start. 

"Zlatan is Zlatan, it's his strength, his return is important. In training with him or without him, there's definitely a difference."

Milan are looking to win five successive games without conceding for just the fifth time in their history on Saturday, having last done so in 2018 under Gennaro Gattuso.

The Rossoneri's run represents a remarkable turnaround after they went seven matches without winning shortly after the World Cup, a downturn which saw them drop out of Serie A's top four and exit the Coppa Italia.

The more positive mood emerging at San Siro has been helped by the returns of Ibrahimovic and goalkeeper Mike Maignan, but Pioli puts their recent improvement down to others stepping up.

"There's more to it [than the returns of Ibrahimovic and Maignan]" Pioli said. "There's the work and the quality of the players. Then we're talking about players who raise the level of the team.

"It's time to give continuity. We are the ones who can influence our performances to achieve positive results, we must play with great attention and great determination. 

"With more players we are stronger, tomorrow [Ismael] Bennacer, [Davide] Calabria and [Alessandro] Florenzi will return."

Stefano Pioli hailed the return of "leaders" Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Mike Maignan after both players made their comeback in Milan's 2-0 win over Atalanta on Sunday.

Ibrahimovic was brought on in the second half for his first appearance since May 2022 when undergoing surgery on his knee that many thought would end his career.

Goalkeeper Maignan was back between the sticks for the first time since sustaining an injury of his own in September, meanwhile, and marked his return with a clean sheet.

The pair coming back into the fold coincides with Milan's best run of form this season, having now won four games in a row in all competitions, and Pioli is delighted to be back to full strength.

"Mike and Zlatan are not only two excellent players, but also two leaders of the team," Pioli, who was taking charge of his 800th career game as a coach, told DAZN. 

"Having them on the pitch helps us a lot. Now we must think about the next match. We will have players absent for that game but will still put in a good performance."

At 41 years and 146 days, Ibrahimovic overtook Alessandro Costacurta (41y, 25d) as Milan's oldest player in Serie A in the three-points-per-win era (1993-94 season).

The veteran striker only had 14 touches of the ball in his 16 minutes in action and did not manage a shot, but Milan's second goal arrived with him on the field.

Junior Messias clipped the ball over Juan Musso, who had earlier scored an unfortunate own goal when Theo Hernandez's 25-yard volley hit the post and went in off his body.

It was a brilliant strike from Hernandez after Olivier Giroud had nodded the ball into his path, and the wing-back believes he should be credited with the goal himself.

"I consider it my goal," he said. "I'm going to count it as mine. Thanks also to Oli for knocking it down for me. It was a good goal.

"It's true that we went through a difficult time, but with this victory we are getting back to being the Milan we were before."

Milan have now won four games without conceding in all competitions for the first time since February 2018, with their latest victory moving them level with second-place Inter.

The Rossoneri wasted a number of good chances with the game at 1-0, but Atalanta failed to offer any sort of attacking threat.

Indeed, they had only three attempts all match – their lowest tally since April 2013 – and did not test the returning Maignan on a single occasion.

"We gave our all and tried everything, but Milan were superior on the night and we must learn from these games to focus on the next one," Gian Piero Gasperini said. 

"What we saw tonight was that despite our best efforts, it is evident Milan simply had more than we did."

The only blemish for Milan is that Rafael Leao – who set up Messias' goal – and Rade Krunic will miss next week's trip to Fiorentina after being booked for the fifth time this term.

Stefano Pioli has confirmed Mike Maignan will make his first appearance since September when Milan host Atalanta on Sunday, saying the goalkeeper has resembled a "lion in a cage" while out injured.

Maignan has been out since suffering a calf injury in France's 2-0 Nations League win over Austria on September 22, missing Les Bleus' run to the World Cup final in Qatar as well as a large portion of Milan's campaign. 

Ciprian Tatarusanu has made 16 league starts as Milan's stand-in goalkeeper this season, and the Romanian made several key saves in last week's hard-fought 1-0 win at Monza. 

However, Pioli is excited by the return of a goalkeeper he believes was Serie A's finest last season, with Maignan set to start against fellow top-four contenders Atalanta at San Siro.

"Mike will play," Pioli said at Saturday's pre-match press conference.

"Tata did his duty fully. He struggled in the beginning because he hadn't played for a long time, then he found rhythm and made a good contribution. He hasn't been very well lately. 

"Mike has been a lion in a cage, he's doing well and is very motivated, he will certainly give us a great contribution. He was the best goalkeeper last season and he gives us a lot.

"However, he is a player who hasn't played for five months. He will need some time, but we are expecting a lot and I am very happy with his return."

Maignan kept 17 clean sheets in 32 league games as Milan won the Scudetto last season – more than any other Serie A goalkeeper.

Meanwhile, the 27-year-old's save percentage of 79.41 was only bettered by one goalkeeper to make at least 10 appearances in Serie A last term – Torino's Etrit Berisha with 80.49 per cent.

Maignan is not the only Milan star returning from a lengthy period on the sidelines, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic being an unused substitute on two occasions this month as he awaits his first outing since undergoing anterior cruciate ligament surgery. 

Asked whether the 41-year-old's long-awaited comeback could arrive on Sunday, Pioli said: "It could, the first call I made with him was to get him back with the group against Torino.

"Ibra is getting better and better. He knows how much he worked and suffered to be available again. Now he's available, he's ready to play."

Milan have won their last three matches across all competitions, with each victory coming via a 1-0 scoreline. 

The Rossoneri are yet to win four consecutive games at any point this season, while they have not posted four successive victories without conceding since February 2018 (a run of five).

Stefano Pioli believes Milan could have ridden out their recent slump and still won the Serie A title if not for Napoli's "exceptional" season.

Milan are fourth in the table, having gone a costly five league matches without a win across January and the start of February.

Still, the Rossoneri were not in a dissimilar position at this stage of last season, in third place before rallying to win the Scudetto.

Pioli received the top honour at the Panchina d'Oro – Italian football's coaching awards – on Monday in recognition of that stunning Milan triumph.

But the coach knows there will be no repeat this year as leaders Napoli are 18 points ahead.

Although Milan are five points down on where they were after 23 games of 2021-22, they still only trail Inter in second by three points. Napoli are the clear outliers.

"We were in position until the 'famous' period of decline," Pioli told reporters at Coverciano. "And then anyway we would still be in position if Napoli were not having the season they are having.

"We must be honest in saying that Napoli are doing something exceptional, we must congratulate them.

"Otherwise all the other teams of our level would be there to play for the title within a few points – as it was last season."

Stefano Pioli credited his Milan players for their efforts in a "perfect week" after Junior Messias' goal guided them to victory at Monza.

Messias' well-taken volley ensured Milan secured a third 1-0 win in the space of eight days, having previously gone seven games without winning across all competitions. 

While that run left Milan's Scudetto defence in tatters, the Rossoneri are third in the Serie A table after keeping three clean sheets in a row for the first time since a run of seven ended last April.

Having seen Milan build on Tuesday's Champions League last-16 victory against Tottenham, Pioli hailed his team's powers of recovery and challenged them to kick on.

"It was the perfect week, we can start over from here," Pioli said at his post-match press conference. "We haven't even conceded a goal and we're on the right track. 

"We needed to regain unity, the difference now isn't tactics but the desire we've regained to win, to compete for the second balls. 

"Monza were brilliant in the second half but we fought until the end and this is important. It's a shame we didn't finish the game in the second half."

Milan have now won back-to-back Serie A games for the first time since the Italian top flight restarted after the World Cup, having only tasted victory twice in their previous five league contests.

Pioli's decision to switch to a three-man backline has provoked Milan's revival, with wing-backs Messias and Theo Hernandez impressing once again at Monza.

Asked about Milan's change of system, Pioli said: "We'll go back to playing with four when we find the right characteristics. 

"Malik Thiaw gives us physicality and the possibility of duelling with physical forwards. The other players also have the characteristics to play in a three."

Milan climbed into Serie A's top four as Junior Messias secured a 1-0 win at Monza, whose owner Silvio Berlusconi failed to get one over on his old club.

Messias fired home on the turn just after the half-hour mark after Monza – who entered the game as Serie A's only unbeaten team in 2023 – twice went close in a fast start to Saturday's match.

Monza played their part in a lively affair but were unable to give Berlusconi – who bankrolled Milan to five European crowns – a result to cherish against his beloved Rossoneri.

Milan were able to claim victory without calling on Zlatan Ibrahimovic for the first time this season, with the striker again an unused substitute as they moved above Atalanta and Roma into third place.

Ciprian Tatarusanu was forced into action twice in the first two minutes, turning Patrick Ciurria's attempt away at the near post before denying Andrea Petagna from the resulting corner.

Rafael Leao saw a dipping 25-yard strike brush the post as Milan played their way into the game, while Michele Di Gregorio made two sharp saves to keep out Brahim Diaz and Fikayo Tomori.

Di Gregorio was finally beaten 31 minutes in, however, getting a hand to Messias' powerful left-footed volley but failing to stop the ball from finding the bottom-right corner.

Ciurria drilled a 20-yard effort against the foot of the post with 17 minutes remaining, but Milan stood firm and almost added a second through Charles De Ketelaere. 

Stefano Pioli set Milan the target of securing a top-four finish in Serie A as he declared himself satisfied with the Rossoneri's response to a dire run of form.

Milan went seven games without a win across all competitions recently, losing three successive league matches before stopping the rot against Torino last Friday.

The Rossoneri then built on that victory with a 1-0 win in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Tottenham, with Spurs failing to respond to Brahim Diaz's early header.

Having been heavily criticised for his tactical switches during Milan's poor run, Pioli has been vindicated by those victories, although he maintains they have work to do to secure a top-four finish.

"Everyone experiences the results with their gut; we have to be impervious to both criticism and excessive praise," Pioli said at a press conference to preview Saturday's trip to Monza.

"It's the league season that gives us the concrete possibility of playing in the Champions League again next year. I've seen the things I wanted to see.

"We're coming from two very good games, and we're trying to win tomorrow. The next game will tell how the team is doing, against a team that is doing very well and playing very well."

Milan are still waiting for the return of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who was an unused substitute for last week's win against Torino after recovering from anterior cruciate ligament surgery.

The 41-year-old striker was absent from the matchday squad for Tuesday's win over Spurs but is available to face Monza, although the form of Olivier Giroud means Pioli has a decision to make.

"The more [Ibrahimovic] trains, the more his condition increases. He'll be available tomorrow, too," Pioli said.

"Giroud is doing very well, [Divock] Origi is doing well, too, and tomorrow I'll see what choices to make."

Saturday's game will see Milan reunited with former owner Silvio Berlusconi, who has overseen Monza's dramatic rise to the top flight since purchasing the club in 2018.

The 86-year-old recently declared Portugal international Rafael Leao should be used in a central striking role by Milan, and Pioli was in no mood to argue with him.

"I always agree with Berlusconi," Pioli smiled. "Always." 

Stefano Pioli was "satisfied" with a 1-0 Champions League win over Tottenham but knows Milan face a stern test in the second leg.

Brahim Diaz's early goal at San Siro on Tuesday ensured the Rossoneri will take a slender advantage to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on March 8 in the battle for a quarter-final spot.

The Serie A champions beat Torino 1-0 last Friday to end a dismal run of seven games without a victory and they followed that up with a first win over Spurs in a competitive match at the fifth attempt.

Charles De Ketelaere and Malick Thiaw wasted glorious chances to extend Milan's lead in the last-16 tie, but a heavier defeat would have been harsh on Antonio Conte's side on the former Inter head coach's return to San Siro.

Rossoneri boss Pioli was content to be in front at the halfway stage in the clash, knowing the Premier League club will fancy their chances of coming from behind in London next month.

He told Mediaset: "It was a difficult, hard-fought match against a tough team. We played a good game, but we know how tough it will be. But tonight I'm satisfied."

Pioli added: "This performance will give us morale, but we have to be attentive, dynamic, ready. We've had a difficult month, but we're trying to overcome all the difficulties. I keep thinking and believing I'm coaching a truly special group."

Asked if he was disappointed not having a bigger lead, he replied: "Yes, for those two chances... De Ketelaere's and Thiaw's. But they, too, put us in difficulty and there are many positive aspects.

"It was only the first stage and the second will be even more difficult."

Stefano Pioli is relishing Tuesday's meeting with old foe Antonio Conte as Milan prepare to host Tottenham in their first outing in the Champions League knockout stages since 2014.

Milan finished second to Chelsea in Group E to progress to the last 16 for the first time since the 2013-14 season, when they were hammered 5-1 on aggregate by Atletico Madrid.

Conte's Tottenham stand between Milan and a spot in the last eight, with the former Juventus and Inter boss one of five Italian coaches still present in the competition.

Conte has won eight of his last nine games against Milan (L1) in a run dating back to 2013, and he joins Pioli, Inter's Simone Inzaghi, Napoli's Luciano Spalletti and Real Madrid's Champions League specialist Carlo Ancelotti on an impressive list of Italian bosses to escape the group stage.

Asked who was the strongest of those coaches at Monday's pre-match press conference, Pioli said: "Ancelotti is a symbol but so are Conte and Spalletti. 

"There are lots of good coaches, we have a good school and important characteristics. 

"Conte is a great coach and one of the few colleagues who called to congratulate me on the Scudetto last season.

"It will be a difficult challenge, inevitably it will be like this for a quarter-final place. A week ago they beat Manchester City. It will be a great game that we will have to play well."

Despite Milan's absence from the latter stages of the competition in recent years, only Real Madrid (14) can better the Rossoneri's tally of seven European Cup/Champions League titles.

Asked whether Milan's illustrious history in the competition could present a psychological barrier for Spurs, Pioli said: "I can't know what our opponents are experiencing, I know what we feel. 

"We are highly motivated and it's normal. We only think up to Tottenham. Winning the Champions League is a dream today but it's useless to think about it now."

With Milan 18 points adrift of Serie A leaders Napoli and suffering defeats in the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana last month, their Champions League tie against Spurs will go a long way to dictating whether their season is deemed a success.  

Speaking to Sky Sport ahead of his press conference, Pioli described the tie as the most crucial occasion of his career.

"They will be the two most important matches of my career, having never played in a Champions League round of 16. We have prepared ourselves in the best possible way," he said.

"Our aim is to play with more pace and intensity, you can't ignore that in these competitions. We have prepared ourselves to be up to it."

The last 16 of the Champions League gets underway on Tuesday with two potentially fascinating encounters.

Milan host Tottenham in the Rossoneri's first Champions League knockout game since the 2013-14 season, while two of the favourites in this year's competition, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich, face off in the French capital.

Neither Milan nor Spurs come into their first leg in the best form, with Stefano Pioli's side getting their first win in eight games on Friday against Torino, while their English opponents were thrashed 4-1 by Leicester City.

PSG are also faltering, having lost 3-1 at Monaco at the weekend, leading to fan protests and Presnel Kimpembe having to calm them down through a megaphone.

Bayern will hope to add to the problems of Christophe Galtier's men, who seem likely to be without Kylian Mbappe, but Julian Nagelsmann admitted his own players are "not in the flow" in spite of their 3-0 win against Bochum on Saturday.

Stats Perform has taken a look at some Opta numbers ahead of the first pair of Champions League knockout games.

Milan v Tottenham

This will be the fifth competitive meeting between Milan and Tottenham, with the Premier League side unbeaten across each of the previous four (W2 D2).

They last played each other in the 2010-11 campaign at the same stage of the Champions League. Spurs won 1-0 on aggregate, with Peter Crouch scoring the only goal of the tie.

Spurs boss Antonio Conte has won eight of his last nine games as a head coach against Milan (L1), between 2013 and 2021. Indeed, he has seen his side win and keep a clean sheet in each of his last three trips to face the Rossoneri away from home (2-0 in 2014, 2-0 in 2019 and 3-0 in 2021 – all in Serie A).

Conte will be looking to win consecutive away games in the Champions League for just the second time in his managerial career, having last done so in the 2012-13 campaign when he was at Juventus (1-0 v Shakhtar Donetsk and 3-0 v Celtic).

Olivier Giroud has been directly involved in six goals for Milan in the Champions League (four goals and two assists) – the last player with more in a single campaign in the competition for the club was Zlatan Ibrahimovic in the 2011-12 season (nine – five goals and four assists).

Ivan Perisic has three assists in five appearances for Spurs in the Champions League, already his joint-most for a club among the four he has played for in the competition: three in 10 games for Bayern, one in 20 for Inter and none in 11 for Borussia Dortmund.

The three players to have recovered possession most often in the middle third of the pitch in the Champions League this season all play for either Milan or Spurs: Rodrigo Bentancur (34), Ismael Bennacer (32) and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (31), though Bentancur will be missing after suffering a season-ending knee injury at the weekend.

Paris Saint-Germain v Bayern Munich

PSG have faced Bayern on 11 previous occasions, with all of them coming in the Champions League. The teams are separated by just one victory (six for PSG and five for Bayern), while they have scored the same number of goals (15 each).

Among teams who have faced Bayern on 10+ occasions in the Champions League, PSG are the team with the highest win percentage against them (55).

Bayern won all six of their group games this season, scoring 18 goals and only conceding twice. The only previous occasion in which they won their first seven matches of a Champions League campaign was in the 2019-20 campaign, when they had a 100 per cent record (11/11) in the competition.

PSG have only failed to score in one of their last 32 home games in the Champions League (averaging 2.6 goals per game), though the exception was in a 1-0 defeat against Bayern in the 2020-21 quarter-final second leg.

Joshua Kimmich has won 76 per cent of his matches for Bayern in the Champions League (50/66). Among all players to make 50+ appearances in the competition, he is the only player to have featured on the winning side in more than three quarters of his games.

Since the start of the 2017-18 season – his first at PSG – Mbappe has been directly involved in 57 goals in 50 appearances in the Champions League (34 goals and 23 assists). Indeed, he is the only player with both 20+ goals and 20+ assists during this period. He will be a big miss should he not recover from injury in time, though he did train on Monday.

In the last two Champions League campaigns, only Robert Lewandowski (21), Mbappe (20) and Mohamed Salah (18) have been directly involved in more goals than Leroy Sane (17 – 10 goals, seven assists).

Lionel Messi has generated more shots following a carry (moving five or more metres with the ball) than any other player in the Champions League this season (14 – six shots and eight chances created).

Milan coach Stefano Pioli believes Tuesday's Champions League meeting with Tottenham arrives at the ideal time for his team, saying Friday's win over Torino helped to "cleanse our spirit".

Scudetto holders Milan halted a five-game winless run in Serie A with the 1-0 victory, as Olivier Giroud scored the only goal of a tight contest at San Siro.

The result lifted the Rossoneri from sixth to third in the Italian top flight ahead of Saturday's fixtures, but they must swiftly turn their attention to Europe in the coming days.

Milan will play their first match in the Champions League knockout stages since 2014 when they welcome Antonio Conte's Spurs to Italy for the first leg of their last-16 tussle.

Asked whether that game comes at a good time for Milan after their confidence-boosting victory, Pioli said: "Yes. The Champions League is what we wanted and deserved. 

"From the round of 16 onwards, anyone would have been a very difficult and competitive opponent, especially the English teams. 

"We'll be there, it will be a difficult match. I know Tottenham well because I know Conte and they deservedly won against [Manchester] City [last week]. 

"It comes at the right time, this victory will cleanse our heads and our spirit a little. We will be ready to play a match to the best of our ability. 

"I can only congratulate our fans, it was a difficult period for them. The fact that they continue to support us can only help us. 

"On Tuesday there will be an audience with great opportunities, and we want to live up to the fans and the Champions League."

The last meeting between Milan and Spurs came at the same stage of the competition in the 2010-11 campaign, when the London club triumphed 1-0 on aggregate via a Peter Crouch goal.

Meanwhile, Tottenham's former Juventus and Inter boss Conte has won eight of his last nine games against Milan (L1), and Pioli knows the Rossoneri will have to step things up.

"We have to do much better, raise the level of the game," he said. "Tottenham are a very strong team, but there is satisfaction. The team worked a lot during the match and that's the most important thing."

Stefano Pioli has defended Milan's decision to not sign a new goalkeeper, despite first choice Mike Maignan still being ruled out indefinitely.

Maignan has not played for Milan since injuring his calf during France's 2-0 Nations League win over Austria on September 22.

The 27-year-old was subsequently ruled out of France's World Cup campaign and has now missed Milan's past 20 matches, with veteran goalkeeper Ciprian Tatarusanu deputising.

Reigning Italian champions Milan's form has nosedived since the turn of the year, having gone seven matches without a win in all competitions, losing five of those.

Milan are unsure when Maignan will return, meaning Tatarusanu is set to start Friday's league game with Torino and next week's Champions League last-16 first leg with Tottenham.

It was previously suggested Milan's board were behind the decision to not recruit an established keeper in January, but Pioli has confirmed he also had a say in the matter.

"The choice was mine and that of the technical team," he said at Thursday's pre-match press conference ahead of facing Torino. 

"We have faith in Tatarusanu and we think that Maignan could be back in action soon."

Asked exactly when he expects Maignan to return to the side, Pioli said: "I don't know. His recovery is progressing well and he's returned to the field, albeit not with the team."

In better news on the injury front for Milan, veteran striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic returned to team training last week and is closing in on a comeback after nine months out injured.

Pioli, whose side have slipped to sixth and are 18 points off leaders Napoli, suggested Ibrahimovic may play a part against Torino.

"He's feeling better," Pioli said. "His role in the side is to be a great motivator and a great player. He'll be with us tomorrow because he wants to be with us."

Rafael Leao is pushing for a recall after being named as a substitute in Milan's past two Serie A games – not since between March and July 2020 has he been benched three games in a row.

"Leao is important for me and the team," Pioli said of the Chelsea-linked forward, who has nine goals and seven assists in 28 appearances this season.

"He's back from the World Cup and played well against Salernitana before losing a bit of his brilliance. He's much happier when he's playing, but I see a motivated and focused player."

Pioli is aiming to avoid losing four successive Serie A games as a manager for only the second time, having previously done so in 2012 as Bologna head coach.

Milan have lost their past two meetings with seventh-place Torino – not since 1969 have they lost three in a row in this fixture – and Pioli accepts an improvement is needed.

"They are a tricky team to play against," he said. "They have caused problems by pressing all over the pitch.

"We have to move a lot better and do something different compared to our past two games against them."