Paolo Maldini insists his fierce criticism of the Milan hierarchy is “out of love” and trusts Sinisa Mihajlovic to help them.

The club legend had been expected to follow in the footsteps of Javier Zanetti at Inter and Pavel Nedved for Juventus by joining the Board after retirement, but instead has been notable by his absence.

“It’s true that I was born and raised at Milan, but the most important thing I achieved in my life was independent thought,” he told Sky Sport Italia.

Paolo Maldini feels Milan’s problems are down to Adriano Galliani. “He doesn’t understand football.”

The former defender and captain famously clashed with CEO Galliani and it’s believed as long as the transfer guru remains in charge, Maldini won’t work for the club again.

He did little to calm the waters with his comments to Sky Sport Italia.

“If Milan want to become great again they need clarity, ideas and investment,” said the Rossoneri legend who spent his entire career at the club.

Milan’s joint-CEO Adriano Galliani won’t “make predictions” about the Scudetto but “I miss the Champions League”.

The Rossoneri thrashed Sampdoria 4-1 at the weekend to move within eight points of the Serie A summit, but the director is cautious over the chances of fighting for the title.

“I don’t like to make predictions,” Galliani told Radio Sportiva.

Adriano Galliani saw “the best Milan of the year” against Sampdoria and is glad he resisted Genoa offers for M’Baye Niang.

The Rossoneri swept Samp aside 4-1 last night with Niang scoring two and providing an assist for Jack Bonaventura. Luiz Adriano was also on target late on.

“It was an excellent performance, the best I’ve seen at San Siro this year,” the CEO told Milan Channel.

Milan CEO Adriano Galliani admits they “considered” Vincenzo Montella this summer and blamed players for their poor form.

The Rossoneri face Sampdoria this evening at 19.45 GMT, follow all the action as it happens on our LIVEBLOG.

“Montella is an excellent Coach and this summer, when he was a free agent, we did consider him. But we are happy with Sinisa Mihajlovic and go forward with him,” Galliani told Mediaset Premium.

Adriano Galliani said “the points are worth double” in tonight’s Juventus v Milan showdown.

It kicks off at 19.45 GMT, follow all the action as it happens and give your views on our LIVEBLOG.

“It’s a very important chapter, though the League is still long and it’s not true that whoever loses is out of the running,” the Rossoneri CEO told Mediaset Premium.

Milan vice-President Adriano Galliani reassures Coach Sinisa Mihajlovic: “His bench is very stable at the moment.”

The Serbian, who took over at San Siro in the summer, has found himself under constant scrutiny this season.

However, a good run of recent form has seen the club rise to sixth place in Serie A, seven points behind leaders Fiorentina and Inter.

“We’ve taken 11 points in this last section,” Galliani told Tuttomercatoweb.

“Mihajlovic’s bench is very stable at the moment.

Milan CEO Adriano Galliani credited Sinisa Mihajlovic with their revival and made a cryptic comment on Andrea Pirlo to Inter.

The Rossoneri have won three on the bounce and seek a fourth against Atalanta tonight. Follow the action as it happens on our LIVEBLOG.

Milan vice-President Adriano Galliani says they are ‘returning to the days of Baresi, Maldini and Costacurta’ due to their promotion of youth players.

Goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma has broken into the Rossoneri first-team this season, along with full-back Davide Calabria.

Galliani believes the successful promotion of these youngsters harks back to the days when the club produced some of the country’s finest players.

“The youth academy is our factory,” he told Milan Channel.

Inter President Erick Thohir reportedly met his Milan counterpart Silvio Berlusconi to discuss San Siro.

The Rossoneri had been planning to move out and build a new stadium in the Portello area of the city, but the plan was scrapped after a disagreement with the owners of the land.

According to Sky, Berlusconi and Adriano Galliani met with Thohir and Michael Bolingbroke at the former prime minister’s Arcore residence.