Roma boss Zdenek Zeman says he shares the club’s aims of finishing in the top three as he prepares to face Milan on Saturday.

The club’s hierarchy this week admitted that qualifying for the Champions League was the desire and Zeman, whose side are presently four points shy of that objective, agrees.

Roma boss Zdenek Zeman says he shares the club’s aims of finishing in the top three as he prepares to face Milan on Saturday.

The club’s hierarchy this week admitted that qualifying for the Champions League was the desire and Zeman, whose side are presently four points shy of that objective, agrees.

“I’m not under pressure,” Zeman stated. “Since the start I’ve said that Roma have to be competitive, that we have to target something important. Whether that happens or not depends on a lot of factors.

“I don't believe tomorrow's match is our last chance to stay in touch with the leaders. As I always say, every match is crucial.

“As things stand there are seven teams slightly better off than the rest and so I think from now on these sides will try to get the better of one another.

“We're currently at the back of this group – people often say it's an advantage to come from behind but sadly this is football, not cycling. We'll compete with all of them.”

Roma have suffered from inconsistency this term, but the man who arrived from Pescara in the summer seems relatively satisfied.

“Obviously I'd be happier had we not thrown away 10 points as we have done over the last few months. But I'm happy with my squad, the way the lads are performing and the football we're producing.

“Of course I'm expecting an improvement from everyone because what we've achieved so far is not good enough. We'll keep working to improve.”

Zeman added that he expects Milan, despite their summer changes, to be a threat at the Stadio Olimpico.

“Milan are still Milan and they've been competing at the top for years. Last season they lost the title over the last few matches.

“They've got a strong squad. Although they've lost three key players, they've once again got the League's top scorer as Stephan El Shaarawy has picked up where Zlatan Ibrahimovic left off.”

Roma squad: Balzaretti, Bradley, Burdisso, De Rossi, Destro, Dodo', Florenzi, Goicoechea, Lamela, Lobont, Lopez, Marquinhos, Osvaldo, Perrotta, Piris, Pjanic, Romagnoli, Stekelenburg, Tachtsidis, Totti.

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