AC Milan still have hopes of qualifying for Europe next season, Vincenzo Montella says, even after Sunday's defeat to Sampdoria.
The setback was Milan's fourth loss in a row in all competitions and leaves them 10 points off of Serie A's three Champions League places.
They're also five points back of Atalanta in sixth place, Milan's last hope of reaching the Europa League next season, but Montella remained optimistic.
"We have to stay calm to continue on this path. We're on the right track. I think our growth is clear: we dominate matches even against the major teams," he told Sky Sport Italia.
"We need to get into Europe and we believe strongly that we can. I believe it."
Luis Muriel's penalty was all Sampdoria needed to secure three points at the San Siro, and Montella was not entirely pleased with his team's response.
"I saw a great game from my team but we needed to speed things up in the second half," Montella said. "We could have done better in the final third and from the point of view of our opportunities. But I can't blame the players -- they put in a good performance.
"It's a difficult period to explain. We're sorry, but football is like that."