Chivu: "It hurts, but we have to move on"

“It hurts to lose a Derby, especially when we had hoped for a different outcome, given the season we're having and what we have to defend. We had to improvise today because of the problems we faced, and we tried to bring back players who made themselves available. We got our approach wrong, but there were positives too. We pulled a goal back to make it 2-1, and if it hadn't been for Maignan's save, we could have equalised. It's disappointing. We need to improve the way we approach games and our attitude, but we have to move on because there's another important match in three days' time. We were forced to make changes. Pio wasn't feeling well, and Bonny had been unwell right up until this afternoon. We had to improvise, but we believed in the decisions we made, playing with two players between the lines, two quick players out wide and Diouf making runs in behind. It didn't work out, but I wouldn't write everything off. We did some good things when we stepped up the tempo and started playing the way we should. At times, though, we were a bit too soft. We need to rediscover the fighting spirit we showed more consistently last season. It's never easy playing every three days and maintaining the same hunger and determination throughout a season, especially after everything we've been through. We need to rediscover our humility, keep our feet on the ground and show greater determination. Sometimes we get too caught up in the past and what we've achieved. We need to find that hunger and fighting spirit again, particularly when we start taking things for granted. We have to be more focused, improve our attitude and find greater consistency. AC Milan played very well and deserve credit. Losing a derby hurts, but we have to respond, recover and get back into the right frame of mind because we have another important match in Rotterdam on Tuesday.”