Chukwueze explains why Allegri is a ‘great coach’ and why he plays with a smile

Samuel Chukwueze is happy AC Milan were able to leave their preseason tour with two wins, and spoke highly of Massimiliano Allegri.

It was crucial that Milan followed up a good display against Liverpool over the weekend by winning against Perth Glory on Thursday, and they did exactly that. The Rossoneri scored five goals in the first half and four in the second, to result in a 9-0 rout of the A-League side.

Chukwueze was the one who scored the fifth not long before the break, and it was a contender for the best of the night. Cutting in from the right wing onto his left foot, the Nigerian unleashed a rocket of a shot that nestled inside the near post and almost broke the net.

Samu shares his thoughts

After the full-time whistle, Chukwueze spoke to Milan TV to assess what was a very dominant performance to cap off a positive week overall in the Far East.

How do you think the tour went?

“We’re happy to have won two games. Today was a good match. Every match counts during preseason to get ready for the start of Serie A.

“Big or small teams, it doesn’t matter, we have to win every game to achieve our goals for the season. Today’s victory tells us we must continue to work hard and focus on the next challenges.”

What have your impressions of Allegri been?

“Coach Allegri is a great coach, everyone knows that; he’s won a lot in his career. And being here now, he wants to win trophies with Milan too. He’s a great coach; he knows what he wants. He works with the players, he knows how to interact with them, he knows what the players want and what he needs.

“He’s a great coach, both defensively and offensively. We just have to keep working with him and try to do what he asks of us. You can’t do things your own way; you have to listen to the coach. If we do that, we’ll get results.”

Image: AC Milan

We see you smiling more…

“You have to always smile, smile and love what you do. Football can be stressful at times, making you think too much about what you can’t do, but you have to smile and always stay happy.

“When you’re happy, everything works because you play with the right serenity, and football, like everything else, is a consequence of that. When things go well, you smile; when things don’t go well, you smile anyway. The most important thing is to focus on yourself.”

What’s the atmosphere like in the dressing room?

“Everyone is happy and working hard. There’s a really great atmosphere in the dressing room. We have a few dancers, and I’m one of them (laughs). It makes our job easier.

“Sometimes you have to focus on the work, sometimes there’s time for fun, there are moments for joking and moments for focus. Now we’ve finished our work, so we can have some fun (laughs).”