De Winter ‘happy’ with first Milan goal and says Allegri asked him to be ‘tidy’

Koni De Winter spoke to the media after AC Milan’s 1-1 draw against Roma, and since he scored his first goal for the club, he seemed pretty content. 

After initially receiving a lot of criticism, De Winter has been praised in the last few weeks for his development, growing despite playing on both sides of the defence. In that sense, today’s goal only confirmed that he’s on the right path.

It wasn’t enough for Milan to clinch all three points, as Lorenzo Pellegrini found the equaliser, but De Winter was still pretty content when he spoke to DAZN after the game (via MilanNews). He also explained that there are no secret ingredients behind his growth.

Disappointed faces…

“We put ourselves in a good position, but it’s a shame about the penalty: I can’t say anything because I didn’t see it, but we have to accept it.”

How was it to deal with that difficult first half?

“They played a very tough first half, but I think our ability to hold our own and defend together allowed us to keep a clean sheet in the first half.”

Photo by Paolo Bruno/Getty Images

What are Allegri’s demands? Are they the same as Pavlovic’s?

“The coach asked me to stay tidy, and this is what he asks from the whole team. I try to keep things balanced and not wander around the pitch too much.”

Do you feel the coach’s confidence?

“It’s always nice to play to help your teammates, to stay on the pitch and fight: all players want that. It’s nice to feel the coach’s confidence.”

You got a goal too…

“I’m happy to have scored my first goal with the AC Milan shirt.”

In our player ratings, De Winter was given a 7/10 just like Mike Maignan and Luka Modric, but the Belgian also got the MOTM award. Let’s hope that he can continue like this, although Strahinja Pavlovic will be hoping for a starting spot next time out.