1 day ago
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Massimiliano Allegri has confirmed a couple more potential injury worries for AC Milan, praising the team for their performance against Atalanta.
For the second game in a row Milan took the lead after just a few minutes, and for the second game in a row they were unable to turn it into three points. This time Samuele Ricci got the opener, and it was Ademola Lookman who drew the home side level in the first half, deservedly so it must be said.
The stats tell the story a bit as Atalanta had 17 total shots to Milan’s six, while the Rossoneri managed just one shot on target to the three that the home side had. Not only that, but La Dea racked up nine corners to four, and had 1.31 Expected Goals as opposed to 0.33 for Allegri’s men.
Allegri’s post-Atalanta reaction
After the final whistle, the Milan coach spoke to DAZN to offer his assessments following a tough fight for his side over the 90 minutes. His comments are via MilanNews.
Was it the most complicated night of the season so far?
“We’re having a few injuries at this point, but the team is responding well. In the first half, we were forced to defend because we made a lot of technical mistakes on exit balls. We had a chance to play, I don’t know if it was due to fatigue or not, but certainly due to Atalanta.
“The second half was a good one, where we had chances to score. We made some poor decisions in the final 20 meters, where we absolutely need to improve. This team needs to be more confident than they are.
“In the first half, we conceded an avoidable goal – we were in a well-organised position. The lads should be happy with their performance in Bergamo, we’re extending our positive streak, and now on Sunday we have a good match against Roma.”
The second half was better…
“Absolutely, we played better. We knew they would struggle in the second half. We need to improve our scoring percentage and our passing choices in the final 20 metres.”
Why did Leao come off?
“He had a hip problem, he trained… Then at the end of the first half he wasn’t feeling great, I preferred to take him off anyway because the team needed fresh players. Rafa wasn’t getting going, so I preferred to take him off.”
Will he make it for Sunday? How’s Gimenez?
“Gimenez got a bit of a knock, we’ll see about Leao, but it shouldn’t be anything special. We should also have Estupinan against Roma. These are ten days where we need to grit our teeth a bit, and then after the break we’ll start again with all the players.”
Did the team do better with Loftus-Cheek? How did Gimenez play in your eyes?
“Nkunku played very well as a striker. Atalanta dropped back, and we found some geometry… Loftus-Cheek in that position when he breaks away… He played 20 extraordinary minutes. In those minutes, however, we had to score.
“There was a situation where Nkunku cut inside, but instead he should have opened up, and instead he cut inside the other way. Then Fofana’s shot, Saelemaekers’ shot blocked by Pavlovic… We had favourable situations in the second half and only conceded one shot after a bad turnover in the build-up.
“Gimenez worked hard, he needs to stay calm and relaxed because the goals will come. He’s a guy who gives his all, he works hard for the team. I’m very happy, and he needs to work calmly.”
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