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Massimiliano Allegri has addressed Antonio Conte’s claims that AC Milan have a squad built for the Champions League, whereas Napoli do not.
Despite winning the Scudetto last season, there was some uncertainty about Conte’s future, with talk that he would leave without backing. Aurelio De Laurentiis had different ideas though, and invested to improve the squad.
Sam Beukema (€31m, from Bologna), Not Lang (€25m, from PSV) and Miguel Gutierrez (€18m, from Girona) were the main investments. Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, Lorenzo Lucca and Rasmus Hojlund came on loan with obligation to buy deals, and Kevin De Bruyne arrived on a free.
After beating Pisa 3-2 on Monday night, Conte was asked about the changes to the squad that were made during the summer, and he mentioned Milan.
“We’re looking at the path forward. We’ve already secured 12 points, and that’s important. It’s important to have started off on the right foot. We also know full well that Milan have the structure of a team that were in the Champions League last year.
“Those who made the Champions League or Europa League have already established squads, something Napoli didn’t have. I repeat: we’ve signed nine players, and everything depends on the growth of these guys who arrived from other clubs.”
Allegri’s response
In his pre-match press conference on the eve of the visit of the champions, Allegri was asked about the comments from his counterpart.
Conte said that Milan have a team built for the Champions League. Do you have a better squad?
“I don’t know that. The club has done a good job on the transfer market; they have an excellent squad, a mix of experienced and less experienced players. We have to think about ourselves, work to ensure that in March we’re there to give ourselves a chance of finishing in the top four.
“We have to think about ourselves; I don’t really care what others think. We have to maintain this trend of focus and enthusiasm, with a desire to improve but with great balance.”
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