Rome, Apr 26 (IANS): AC Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri insisted that his side could still retain the Serie A title after they beat a 10-man Genoa 1-0.

"Until the mathematical possibilities are wiped out, we will continue to believe and try to fight back," Allegri was quoted as saying by Xinhua after his team's win here Wednesday.

"The pessimism is around us, but not within the team. If Juventus reach 86 points then it means they have deserved the title. We'll have to wait and see.

"It is a pity that we have dropped five points on home turf, but we were coming off months at full tilt. The important thing was to win and keep the Scudetto race alive. I believe something can still happen," he said.

It looked to be a goalless draw until Kevin-Prince Boateng's late winner, though Genoa had penalty appeals for an Alessandro Nesta handling offence in the first half.

"It was a penalty, looking at the footage," confessed Allegri. "Genoa did well on a tactical level today and did not allow us any space.

"We had pressure on us to win, as we were coming off two disappointing home performances. After the break we created a few more scoring opportunities. We do tend to find goals, but the problem recently is we' ve given too many away," he added.