2 hours ago
22
AC Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri has responded to questions on the title race, the Inter-Juventus drama, and the selection doubts he faces.
This is the second time in just over a month that Milan and Como will face each other. The Rossoneri beat their Lombardy neighbours by the lake with an Adrien Rabiot-inspired performance, which sparked a debate about style versus substance after Cesc Fabregas’ comments.
The Como fans even fired a shot at Allegri and Milan during their game against Fiorentina over the weekend (ironically also a defeat), so there is a bit of tension coming into this one. Not only that, but Milan need to win in order to get the gap to Inter back down to five points.
Allegri’s pre-match press conference
Allegri spoke to the reporters who gathered at the Milanello training complex on the eve of the game against Como for his pre-match press conference. The questions from the reporters and the answers from the coach were transcribed by MilanNews.
How important is it for Milan to stay focused on themselves at this point in the season?
“It’s important because we’re in the final three months of the season. This is where the season, the league, the Champions League spots, and whether we stay in Serie A are being decided.
“We have little margin for error, and there’s little time to recover. Tomorrow’s a tough match, Como is still in the thick of the Champions League battle. We’ll need to be focused and prepare for the match as best we can.”
Can you give us an injury update?
“Aside from Rabiot, who’s suspended, the others are doing pretty well. Saelemaekers is available, and hopefully Pulisic, because he’s always had this minor discomfort. We’ll see if he’ll be available. We’ll have Gimenez back with the team as soon as possible.”
How do you feel after the weekend of controversy?
“Many have already spoken about it. We need to stay focused on our objective, without wasting mental and emotional energy on what happened. We need to be good at managing unexpected events during matches.
“These things have always happened in football, they are happening, and they will always happen. The right people are working to improve the objective aspects of VAR. Subjective things are debatable, but objective ones are not. The important thing for us is the points tomorrow; we need to take another small step forward.”
How is Leao doing in percentage terms?
“I’m having a hard time saying the percentage. Let’s just say he’s fine. He had a good training session yesterday too. He’s a player, just like Pulisic, who had a season with physical issues but scored important goals.
“In the final part of the season, when matches will completely change and technical players like them will be needed, he will certainly do very well.”
Do referees need more help?
I don’t know if we need to professionalize referees or not. Our league is wonderful, these things have always existed and will continue to exist. We were able to analyse an episode in the English league.
“We need to ask ourselves whether the matches and technical gestures are more important than the referees’ decisions. Instead of analyzing a player or a coach, we focus on the referees. Relieving pressure on referees would be important.
“The age of referees has been lowered, and that’s absolutely not easy for them. There’s a lot of pressure in Italy because qualifying for the Champions League is a matter of economic life and death. We need to stay focused on the final objective; everything depends on that.”
Fabregas didn’t take the defeat very well in the first meeting…
“I don’t think there’s any debate. Let’s just say that Como and Fabregas are doing a great job, they’re fighting for the Champions League. They’ve done a very good job in such a short time, so we can only congratulate them.
“Then there are times when you play well and times when you play less well. For us at Milan, it’s important to get results through performances, which can be good or bad, and we have a goal to achieve, which is a place in the Champions League.”
What do you think of diving? How can it be limited?
“Football has become incredibly fast-paced, and it’s not easy for the referee. The speed of the ball, the pace of the game, the physicality of the players is different than it was 30-40 years ago. We need to improve VAR and find solutions, as they’re certainly doing, and it’s not like they’ll find them overnight.
“Let’s try to achieve objectivity. And what is objectivity? In my opinion, one thing that absolutely needs to change is when there’s an offside and the move leads to a corner, the corner absolutely cannot be awarded.
“It’s subjective, it’s the referee’s discretion. And there’s nothing you can do about it. I struggle to choose the line-up, let alone tell VAR what to do. Football isn’t easy to explain, we can’t indoctrinate everyone.
“It’s beautiful because the weakest can beat the strongest. What happened on Saturday is disappointing for everyone, but I think the ones who are most disappointed are the protagonists.”
Do you and the team feel pressure or honour to keep the title race open?
“We’re not the only team still fighting for the Scudetto. There are still 13 games to go, and anything can happen. We need to be very cautious, both at the top and at the bottom of the table. We absolutely mustn’t waste energy on external factors. Right now, we need to keep our eyes closed.”
Is there a risk that the team will enter tomorrow with a heavy heart after Saturday?
“Why? We’re doing good things. Inter were the clear favourites in the league, they started as favourites along with Napoli and now they’re even more favourites.
“We still have a lot of points to go, and they’re moving forward. Juve, Napoli, Roma, Como… We need to stay very calm. Once we’ve achieved our objective of the Champions League, then we’ll see.”
Valentine’s Day brought a banner against you at Como’s stadium and dinner with Galliani…
“Adriano and I are friends. When we can, we see each other and talk about everything. There’s always something to learn from Adriano. He’s Milan’s biggest fan.
“The first message I get when we win is always from him. Now there are excellent directors working for Milan’s future. The Como banner? It’s folklore, that’s fine.”
How will you replace Rabiot? Is Ricci the replacement?
“I haven’t decided on the line-up yet. Jashari is doing very well, I have to decide who to field. Adrien is doing very well, he’s improved technically, tactically, physically, and mentally. Whoever takes the field tomorrow will definitely have a great game.”
Does controversy unite an environment? Milan thinks only of itself, but what about the others?
“It’s impossible to say. At the end of the season, we’ll see if we were more focused than the others. It all depends on the final result. For now, it’s all speculation.
“Ifs and buts don’t matter, what matters is what you do on the pitch. I’ve made mistakes in the past, gotten into arguments, and made mistakes. So, I’ll step back and listen.”
Did you expect Modric to still be able to give so much?
“Luka’s secret is that he has a passion, a visceral love for football, that drives him to perform like this, to apologise and get angry with himself when he makes a bad pass, one in every 50-60 passes he makes.
“The calmness with which he approaches training and matches… the others have a lot to learn. Luka’s expression changes when the decisive moment of the match arrives. And that’s something that great champions do.”
What kind of game will it be tomorrow?
“You have to play an orderly game. If you’re disorganized against them, you risk making a bad impression. In Como, Maignan saved us.
“They’re a team that plays, they’re aggressive, and they’re in great form. We need to play an orderly game, with patience and cohesion, which are our best qualities.”
It’s almost March. Are Milan where you expected them to be?
“We’ll take a snapshot in March. That said, all the teams have something to complain about. If, if, if we’d scored 100 points, we’d already be in the Champions League. All the teams have something to complain about. The points we have, 53, are what we deserve.
“Tomorrow is a very difficult match, then Parma and Cremonese will take us to the derby. From these three games, we’ll see where we stand. We’ll be in March, so we’ll be able to make a different assessment.”
Did Saturday’s incident remind you of Muntari’s goal in 2012?
“Muntari’s goal was objective. And we didn’t lose that Scudetto because of Muntari’s goal, we lost it afterwards. One incident affects a match, not a season. That goal was objective, but we didn’t lose it because of that incident.
“We have to decide if VAR can intervene… Objectivity in tennis is whether the ball is in or out. Let’s let them work, in a few years, maybe it will definitely work better. We can’t go back. We just have to have a little patience.”
English (US) ·