Massimiliano Allegri urged AC Milan not to "waste 10 months of good work" after their Champions League qualifying hopes were dented by Sunday's 2-0 defeat at Sassuolo.

The Rossoneri missed the chance to move level on points with second-place Napoli, and eight clear of Como in fifth, after a disappointing display at the MAPEI Stadium, where they recorded just a single shot on target.

Milan's xG of 0.27 was their lowest in a Serie A match in eight years, as they failed to score for the fifth time in seven league games.

Allegri's side also had to play over an hour with 10 men, following Fikayo Tomori's first-half dismissal for two bookable offences, but the head coach called for his players to "stay grounded" in their top-four quest.

"We approached both halves badly, especially the second," he told DAZN. "We threw it away. That's how it’s going in this period.

Full-time. pic.twitter.com/VhUkOkLODF

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"You can't waste 10 months of work. Technically, we made a lot of mistakes. It was a bad day, a bad Sunday. We have to meet again on Tuesday and work to fix it.

"[Our top-four place is] not at risk. I would be very happy to confirm it on the final day as well. 

"I am with the team every day, and this is a difficult moment. We have to stay calm and take responsibility; we have to prepare as best we can for the game against Atalanta [next weekend].

"We've done 10 months of good work, we're in the final stretch. We haven't done very well in the second half of the season, we can't change that any more. We just have to look ahead.

"Until the end, we have to stay grounded and work to overcome these moments of difficulty. I understand the fans, we all wanted to get over the finish line quickly, but we can't get anxious."