AC Milan coach Filippo Inzaghi has been given assurances regarding his position until the end of the season, according to reports.
Milan slumped to a 3-0 loss at Napoli on Sunday evening, a defeat which leaves the Rossoneri all but mathematically out of the running for a place in Europe next season.
According to Il Corriere dello Sport, the club deems a change of coach now would not make any difference at such a late stage of the campaign.
"People have been talking about my future for months, but all I am doing is concentrating on how we get on on the field," Inzaghi told Sky Sport Italia. "All I can ask of my team is to end the season with dignity.
"I'm very proud to have been given the chance to coach Milan and I will look to do the best I can until I am told otherwise. I think this has been an important year for me which will help me a lot in my coaching career, in good and in bad."
A red card for defender Mattia De Sciglio after just 45 seconds effectively ended any hope Milan had of returning home from Naples with anything.
"You can't go and send a player off after 40 seconds for something which is so dubious," Inzaghi said at the postmatch news conference. "[Gabriel] Paletta was coming in and it can't be considered a clear goalscoring opportunity.
"But I'm pleased with the spirit my lads showed. If I get the opportunity, I'm going to give some young lads a chance because it's a great satisfaction to give youngsters their debuts."
Meanwhile, after spending the second half of last week mulling over and ultimately not accepting an offer from Thai broker Bee Taechaubol for the sale of Milan, president Silvio Berlusconi is reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport to have conducted talks with a Chinese group over the weekend.
Taechaubol left Milan on Friday after his bid to secure a majority holding was put on ice for a few weeks with Berlusconi not entirely convinced he would be doing the right thing in selling.
La Gazzetta reports that Berlusconi has been spotted meeting with a Chinese businesswoman, dubbed by the paper "Mrs X" and thought to be one of three main representatives for the Wahaha Group along with Zong Qinghou and Richard Lee.
It is not yet clear whether they are contending with Taechaubol for control of the club, or whether Berlusconi is willing to offer him a minor share. Taechaubol at least does not expect his bid to be rejected.
"Our agreement with Milan should be completed within three or four weeks," Taechaubol told reporters awaiting him at Bangkok airport. "We're discussing legal matters with our solicitors.
"Once the agreement has been drawn up, we can start to rebuild the side to be victorious again. I cannot give any further details because we're in a phase of negotiation."
Taechaubol may therefore gain control of Milan at the end of the season -- a perfect time to start his rebuilding of the club, probably starting with a change on the bench.