Allegri discusses ‘best team’ to face Lecce, Coppa Italia final ambitions and Ricci

AC Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri will have to watch from the stands tomorrow night. However, he has hope for his team and high aims. 

There is a lot of pressure on the Coppa Italia, even if there isn’t really. Ultimately, Milan will live and die by their results in Serie A; that much is unavoidable. However, the Rossoneri also need a strong performance in the cup.

After all, the goal is to establish themselves as one of the best teams in Italy once again, and a route deep into the cup is a must.

Allegri looks to Lecce

For Allegri, the pressure does not lessen even with his suspension, and he will demand high performances from his team like the ones that have been delivered for the majority of the season. However, he is still in charge of conducting pre-game media pieces.

Today, he spoke to Sportmediaset, and this evening, he spoke to MilanTV about the game, as MilanNews relayed.

“For us, the Coppa Italia is a goal for the season. We’ll start talking about the league again on Wednesday, tomorrow, we have a game to win. It’s important for us because we have to move forward to play in the round of 16.

“It won’t be easy, and we only have 90 minutes to secure it, because then we can’t go to penalties, because anything can happen there.

“For the lads, arriving in Rome in May is always great because they’re wonderful nights. We have a journey to make, which started much earlier this year. We need to have the right approach, we need to have great respect for Lecce, who are a team that plays well and will have zero pressure on them tomorrow.

“Tomorrow we’ll need to be good in our approach and bring home another win.”

Lecce’s quality…

“Lecce are a team that wants to advance to the next round. They want to achieve something at San Siro; it’s up to us to have the right approach, we need to forget about the positive events in the league. We’ll think about the league from Wednesday when we resume.

Lineup choices…

“Regardless of who plays, tomorrow we’ll have the best team to face Lecce. That’s our goal, everyone’s. Today I’ll evaluate everyone’s condition and make my decision tomorrow.

“Ricci’s doing well, I’m happy. Santiago Gimenez has had good performances; he’s had chances. He hasn’t scored yet, maybe tomorrow he can.”

The group…

“I’m happy with the others, the important thing is to work hard and talk little. We’re only at the start of the season, we haven’t done anything, it takes a long time to build and a long time to destroy. Tomorrow will be a match we must take seriously and responsibly.

“Fans? We need everyone; they will have to support us in this long season. We and the players will have to be good at getting results, which is what matters in football.”