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After AC Milan’s win against Fiorentina, Massimiliano Allegri spoke to the media and shared his thoughts on the Rossoneri’s performance.
Thanks to the win, Milan now sit at the top of the Serie A standings with 16 points. It wasn’t the most convincing of displays, but considering the many injuries Allegri had to deal with, he should certainly be happy with the outcome.
Speaking to DAZN after the game, as transcribed by MilanNews, Allegri shared his thoughts on the penalty, why he didn’t play Santiago Gimenez from start, and how much this win actually means for the Rossoneri. As he made clear, they still have a long way to go.
Do you have anything to say about Fiorentina’s post-match reaction to the penalty?
“No, I can only say that the team played a good game. Until the goal, we hadn’t allowed a single shot on target, and we conceded a goal we could have avoided.
“We had two chances in the first half through Tomori and Pavlovic, as well as a cross from Athekame. After conceding, there was a good reaction: it wasn’t easy, and we’re happy about that.”
Were you satisfied with Leao as a striker?
“When he had Gimenez in the second half, he was certainly more free to roam. However, you can also get used to playing without a centre-forward because this evening Fofana, especially in the second half, started to make runs as a midfielder, and that’s a very important advantage.”
Leao took the penalty: when was the decision made? Is he the penalty taker?
“There was no confusion. I told Rafa to take the penalty: he practised them in training and did well. Fofana is also a good penalty taker. We need to improve the penalty miss rate.”
Why not Gimenez and Leao from start?
“If I had you on the bench, maybe I would have started with Gimenez (to Vieri who asked the question). Jokes aside, if I had started him, I wouldn’t have had any other striker on the bench.
“I waited for the substitution because there was a corner, but after Athekame’s yellow card, I immediately called on Gimenez. I had to read the game: I was lucky and it went well for me. The important thing was to keep it balanced, and in the first half we had chances.”
How much does this victory mean?
“We’re not sending any messages; we have to enjoy this victory. We still have a lot of points to collect to reach our goal, and starting tomorrow, we need to regain as much energy as possible.
“We’ll be back here on Friday, and we hope to have Loftus and Nkunku recovered for then. We have to play with this enthusiasm, but without getting too excited, because we still have a long way to go.”
Milan will be up against Pisa next and that game is scheduled for Friday evening next week. It’s not what you would call a usual kick-off time for the Rossoneri but it makes sense, as Atalanta are up after that on the Tuesday.
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