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00:00Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome along to the pre-match press conference ahead of Milan Fiorentina.
00:07We'll start with Milan TV. Thank you, Nicola. Good afternoon, coach.
00:12On the 5th of October, you left the team at Juventus Stadium.
00:18You had your first proper training session with everyone in the squad yesterday.
00:22Regardless of the daily news that's been breaking, have you rediscovered the same team in terms of their mentality, their mindset?
00:30Yesterday, we had our first training session with everyone there all together, ahead of tomorrow night's match.
00:37The boys are looking good.
00:41Matches after an international break are always a bit of an enigma, because you need to make sure that you're focused right from the word go.
00:49And beginning tomorrow, we have a new cycle of five matches.
00:54And it's an important run of games, because this is an important month.
01:00Tomorrow is the first game in that cycle.
01:05We need to do a good job to make sure that we produce a very focused performance.
01:08We're up against a Fiorentina side that, regardless of their league position, they have produced some good and excellent performances.
01:15They've got some excellent players in their side as well.
01:18So we need to be very switched on and focused.
01:21Tomorrow is an opportunity to take another little step forward and to consolidate our league position.
01:28Pepe Di Stefano Sky.
01:29Pepe Di Stefano Sky.
01:31Hi, coach.
01:33If possible, besides the final training session that you still need to have, could you give us the latest from the treatment room?
01:40Today, it's 100 days since you've been back at Milan.
01:43Could you talk us through the ups and downs that Rafael Liao has had psychologically?
01:55He was delighted to play centre-forward.
01:57Then he was injured.
01:59Then he came back.
01:59He's made a bit of a slow start.
02:00What have you made of him over the last few weeks?
02:03Rafael Liao has had a good week.
02:05He came back from international duty.
02:08He returned on Monday and had a good week's training.
02:11Rafael Liao still needs to get back to full fitness.
02:15So I think he is ready to once again be one of our leading lights, our star players.
02:22We need him just as we need everyone else.
02:25And come at the end of the season, we all need to make sure that we've helped get us there.
02:31Rafael needs to show what he can do for the rest of the team.
02:34He's got real quality, and I'm pleased, first and foremost, that he's got good fitness levels.
02:43As for the latest from the treatment room, we're without Christian Pulisic and Adrian Rabiot.
02:51They're unlikely to be available for selection before the next international break.
02:55Estupinian has an ankle problem, so he won't be available for selection tomorrow.
02:59Christopher Nkunku is a question mark, because he has an issue with his big toes, giving him a few issues.
03:08It depends whether he can put his boot on or not.
03:10If not, he won't be available for selection.
03:12Yashari Zao, that's the latest.
03:14Everyone else is available for selection.
03:16As for Alexis Salamakas, he is available for selection.
03:19We have an appropriate number of players in order to approach tomorrow's game, a sufficient number.
03:35So there's no real issues on that score, because we know that injuries are part and parcel of the league season.
03:41There are times when injuries come in a big glut, and there are other times when you need to make sure that you do a good job and realise what sort of stage of the season it is, and it gives you additional motivation.
03:55Maybe we're a bit short numbers-wise, and therefore the players that are available for selection need to step up and do more as a result.
04:01Mediaset.
04:02Hi Max, I'd also like to come back to what you were saying about Rafael Liao.
04:07Regardless of the fact that you are giving him a different role, more of a centre-forward position as opposed to less of a winger, what have you made of Rafa over the last hundred days?
04:19Do you believe he's a world-class player, given that you have coached so many top-class footballers over the years?
04:25Based on what you've seen, is he a world-class player?
04:28Rafa has some extraordinary technical ability, but as I said previously, we need to give him time to play, we need to give him time to show what he can do, because ultimately what matters, it's very simple, it's what happens on the pitch.
04:47You need to show what you can do out there on that grass turf.
04:50People talk too much about Rafa, Rafa's an important player, he's a lovely kid, who's really keen to show what he can do, unfortunately Rafa has been held back by injuries, and now he's making his way back to full fitness, and I think that he will do very well going forward.
05:11We mustn't waste time thinking as to whether he's a world-class player or not, we'll see that over time, when he finishes his career, people will then decide whether Rafa has been a world-class player or not.
05:24Carlos Passerini, Corriere della Sera.
05:26Hi Max, you said that there are a sufficient number of players to play the game tomorrow, that's also true, but it's also true that this October international break was disastrous for Milan in particular, but we're now used to the fact that having so many injuries at the end of an international break, you're a very experienced coach, you've got a lot of experience, and you look around as well.
05:50What rules can we come up with? Can we come up with some new legislation? What can the FAs do? What can clubs do to avoid this? Because it's an issue, it's an injury, you know, these injury issues are really affecting everyone.
06:08I completely agree with that. First and foremost, I think we have made progress. I believe next year the two international breaks have been incorporated into one, and that means there will be a longer international break, and that means that if someone does sustain an injury on international duty, they have the opportunity to then return during that period, and when they go back to joining up with their club, they're already fit again.
06:30But you also need to be a little bit fatalistic and pessimistic. Sometimes players come back and they are injured, sometimes they come back and they're healthy, these things happen.
06:40This is the most dangerous period because typically injuries occur in the November international break, and that's not by chance because come November, a number of players have played so many matches, so November and March are the two months which are most dangerous statistically in terms of the incidence level of injuries.
07:03So what can we do? Well, we have made progress with those two international breaks being incorporated into one, but we also need to come up with solutions. There are answers for everything.
07:14You need to find the solution because football has become globalized, football has evolved, and we can no longer take a step back. Absolutely not.
07:21Hi. In tomorrow night's match against Fiorentina, you both played six matches. They've had three draws and three defeats. I wanted to know what your Milan side needs to be most wary of tomorrow.
07:43Before that, I'd like to come back to the previous question about the players. Something that I read a while back, and I think this is right, is that we should actually bring matches forward from 8.45 to 8.00 p.m.
08:01because at 8.00 p.m. you actually allow the players to go to bed a little bit earlier and to rest up because it all comes down to recovery from one match to another.
08:11And three extra hours recovery could actually help the players because playing between 8.00 and 8.45, you think it's only 45 minutes difference, but actually it's a big difference because the match finishes a lot later.
08:26So maybe we could have kickoff times at 8.00 p.m. as opposed to 8.45. That said, Fiorentina against Milan, what did you say? Three defeats and three draws?
08:36Football matches are all very difficult to play and above all to win.
08:53Against above all a team like Fiorentina who have excellent quality. They have players in the final third who can score goals.
09:01Fiorentina are a very organized side. They're well coached, well drilled, and I think they deserve more points in the table than their current hall.
09:13That's why tomorrow night we need to make sure that we're very focused, just as we did in our recent matches.
09:20We still need to improve certain situations, both with the ball and above all when out of possession.
09:29Because what we have done is good, but at this moment in time we are still some ways off.
09:40There's still a number of points to be secured, a number of matches to be played.
09:43We still have to take it step by step.
09:45We need to make a small step forward tomorrow, absolutely.
09:51Hi coach, I'd like to stay with the international break.
09:56Do you not think that we will require a bit more good sense from the head coaches, common sense?
10:05Pulisic, who had an ankle injury, why pick him in a friendly, which ultimately didn't matter much,
10:11and now Milan are without a player for a month, and something I'd like to know.
10:17Who will take penalties with Pulisic out?
10:20Pulisic certainly won't take the penalties because he's not around.
10:25We'll see that during the training session, but above all we need to improve our percentages.
10:31Milan have missed five of their last seven penalties, so something needs to be sorted out.
10:35Not in terms of the way we strike them, but in terms of the hierarchy of the penalty takers.
10:41As for the international breaks, it's hard to say, because I'm a club head coach,
10:47and therefore I reason in a certain way, whereas when you're a head coach of a national team,
10:52of course, then you'll look at things differently, so it's not even simple for them either.
10:57As I said, these are things that happen, we need to find a solution immediately.
11:07They'll now get a bit of rest and they'll be fresher in November, without a doubt.
11:11Hi Max, I'd like to come back to Antonio's question.
11:16When the first news broke about Pulisic and Rabiot in terms of how they've been managed,
11:22all of those situations, how does a head coach not get angry when it comes to some very dateable decisions
11:31in terms of how you manage players?
11:32You've already answered that question to a certain extent.
11:35And what have you made of Santi Jimenez, who probably played his best game in a Milan shirt against Juventus,
11:41and is he close to maybe scoring a goal that will really help him?
11:49Santi's looked good, he's come back in and looked good.
11:51He played very well in Turin against Juventus.
11:54As for when I learned of the news, when there's a problem, you need to find a solution.
12:00You can't keep talking about the problem, otherwise you just waste time.
12:05One question, please, each.
12:10I wanted to ask two questions, but if it's not possible, no worries.
12:15Okay, the first.
12:17I'd like to read what Stefano Pioli has said.
12:20Milan have conceded more than the numbers say.
12:28So he said that things have actually been going very well for you.
12:32Given that you've said we always need to improve, we always need to improve.
12:35Is that the case?
12:41No, we definitely afforded a number of opportunities against Napoli at home because it was 10 v 11.
12:48They did have some chances.
12:49And there were some other matches where there were some chances.
12:53There are some times when you defend better, but ultimately you do afford chances to the opposition.
12:56After a good game against Juventus in the 90th minute, we were 3 v 1 in the box.
13:05Gabbia did a very good job from that Kostic cross, but we could have actually compromised a very good result with that one situation.
13:11So if all of the players played perfectly, which is impossible, then of course every game would finish nil-nil.
13:18Matches are ultimately decided by a mistake from one team, and then there's the ability of an opposition player that produces a piece of skill, a match-winning moment.
13:27One thing is that we need to keep going in the knowledge that every ball is not necessarily decisive to either win or lose a game,
13:42but it's decisive when it comes to securing our goal, which is something very different.
13:47When you're at Milan, you can't think that if you make a mistake, ultimately costs you a result or makes you lose a game.
13:59One point over the course of a league season for Milan will ultimately decide whether you win the Scudetto or not,
14:05or whether you finish in the top four or not.
14:07My second question is as follows.
14:09I saw some footage coming from the French national team during the halftime break in which Adrien Rabiot is massaged by the physio.
14:30Despite that, he was then picked for the second half until he then got injured,
14:36at which stage they had to substitute him.
14:40But what's even more serious from an ethical and professional perspective is that Didier Deschamps in the post-match interview,
14:49when he spoke to the press, said, no, it's only a knock.
14:52So, regardless of what the coach thinks, I think the club should present a formal complaint to FIFA for this behaviour,
15:06because it's inconceivable that a player that is a club's asset should be used as if they were an exclusive asset of a national team head coach.
15:18So, what do I need to say in response to that?
15:22I've already answered the question.
15:27You need to stay very calm.
15:29We can't go back in time, because even if we protest, it's not like Adrien Rabiot is going to play tomorrow against Fiorentina.
15:37He needs to recover as best he can.
15:39We need to help him back to full fitness.
15:41I think we need to take all of the time possible, because the calf injury that he has is a real brute of an injury, just as Rafael Liao had it.
15:54Because maybe you don't feel any pain, but then when you do start to feel pain, then you just pull up again.
15:59So, we have an excellent fitness staff and medical staff that will make sure that he is fighting fit.
16:06The same goes for Christian Pulisic, and the same goes for all the other players who, at this moment in time, due to force majeure, are resting up.
16:14Hi, coach.
16:16Given that it's all very controversial, I'd like to ask you about another controversial decision.
16:25Milan Como in Australia, given that some of your players have said it's crazy.
16:28I've already answered this.
16:33At this moment in time, I don't believe it's been made official, if I'm not mistaken.
16:39When it is official, we will organise a way trip to go and play in Perth, Western Australia.
16:44What else can we do?
16:46We need to do a good job to make sure that we find the ideal solution whereby we go to Perth in the best possible conditions in order to play that game,
16:55which, for us and for Como, we need to think about us.
16:59There are three points on the line.
17:00There'll be three very important points with regards to our ultimate goal.
17:05But at this moment in time, there's no point wasting time thinking about what might come to pass in two months' time.
17:12Tomorrow, we have a game against Fiorentina.
17:14Let's think about that match.
17:15Once we've played that game, then we'll tot up who is available for selection to go and play next Friday against Pisa.
17:23Once we've finished against Pisa, we'll then weigh up who's available to go and play away at Atalanta.
17:32We need to think first and foremost about tomorrow.
17:34We can't get too far ahead.
17:35It's the game after an international break.
17:37It's a very dangerous game because players come back after two weeks away.
17:41So we need to make sure we're very switched on.
17:43I always say that matches after international breaks are almost like the first game of a league season.
17:50They're always an enigma, a question mark.
17:52So we need to make sure that we have our feet on the ground and we approach the game in the right way.
17:56Sport Italia.
17:57Hi, coach.
18:00I'd like to come back to talking about footballing matters.
18:05How influenced are you by having so many unavailable players when it comes to picking your team?
18:12What do I mean by this?
18:13You said many times during this press conference that the team that wins the Scudetto ultimately comes from players coming off the bench.
18:20But you don't have many players on the bench.
18:21Will you deliberately leave some players on the bench?
18:24Maybe one striker rather than two?
18:26Will you keep Salamakas amongst the substitutes not to risk him immediately?
18:29How does it work?
18:30It works this way.
18:31I can't make any decisions until tomorrow morning because I need to figure out who I really have available to pick from.
18:37That said, fortunately, we have some players.
18:41Atacame can play on the right and the left.
18:43Pavlovich can play left back very well.
18:47So we have solutions within the squad.
18:51So there are solutions and we'll find them.
18:53What matters is that the team plays as such.
18:57We need to have the utmost respect for Fiorentina.
18:59We need to make sure that we stay together.
19:02We're very humble and ultimately the team will produce a great performance.
19:05Tele Lombardia.
19:10Hi, coach.
19:12Given that this has been a talking point in this international break, I also asked Zlatan Ibrahimovic what happened in the dressing room in Turin.
19:23So I'll ask you as well.
19:25We know that it all happened where Rafa said, don't get me angry even before coming on.
19:32What happened, coach?
19:34No, nothing happened.
19:36Just as something happens many times, above all, when you're playing in a game like we did away at Juventus,
19:43where you have the opportunity to come away with maximum points.
19:45And after that game, after the full-time whistle, you mustn't be happy because the game panned out in a certain way.
19:57And if you want to raise the bar, if you want to improve and secure your goals, when you come out of matches like those where you could have come away with victory,
20:07that said, in the second minute of added time, switching off, you could have also lost the game, you need to be very angry.
20:14But above all, we need this in order to grow, not only for the team, but for the club as a whole, if we want to secure certain goals and we must secure certain goals.
20:25That's it.
20:26It wasn't a game whereby you're on the receiving end and you need to be happy with the result that you've secured.
20:31It was a match in which you could have won.
20:35And you should have won it.
20:40Because when you can win matches, you must win matches.
20:43When you can't win matches, you mustn't lose them.
20:46Gioia.
20:47Gioia.
20:53Hi, coach.
20:53The other night, I saw Matrix.
21:01I know you've, I was thinking about Nio stopping those bullets in Matrix.
21:07You know, it's a little bit about Rafael Gioia during this international break.
21:15Does Rafa need to be shot by those bullets or can he stop the bullets?
21:19It comes down to his character.
21:20What I would say is that Rafa has ability and all that matters in football, coaches are judged based on results and players are judged based on their performances out there on the pitch.
21:32What else can you say?
21:34Rafael Gioia has a lot of ability.
21:36We all expect a great deal from him because he needs to give a helping hand to the team with his ability.
21:41So now that he's physically fitter, I'm very happy to have him to pick from.
21:50Pianeta Milan.
21:51Hi, coach.
21:53Yesterday I was reading that amongst the Milan players that have come off the bench, the only one that's made an impact with the goals and assists is Christian Pulisic.
22:01You always say that players coming off the bench ultimately win and lose titles.
22:07What does this come down to and how can you improve it?
22:09How important is it to improve it?
22:11The substitutes are important.
22:13Lest we forget, he's only come in at the end of August.
22:19He had to find full fitness.
22:22Then he went away.
22:23He's been out for three days.
22:24There's a number of coincidences that means that you can't necessarily improve the players' fitness levels.
22:32But these are top class players.
22:34So you need to be patient to wait for them to come around.
22:40And once you wait for these players to improve physically, you need to keep getting results.
22:46That's why the squad is so important.
22:51That's why it's important to have your goal clear in mind, where you're heading towards.
22:55And you need to make sure that you don't get there with one giant stride, but with several small steps.
23:01That's very important.
23:03Hi, coach.
23:04Tomorrow in Milan, Fiorentina, it's the last two head coaches that have won the Scudetto with Milan.
23:14I'm sure you knew that, Stefano Pioli and Massimo, Massimiliano Allegri.
23:17What's your rapport?
23:19What's your relationship like with him?
23:23Often you talk about the normality is winning things at Milan, but we shouldn't forget.
23:31But you always remind us that Milan's goal is fourth place.
23:35But given what's been said, given the players' reaction after the Juventus game, how much have you improved?
23:41And are you already ready to win the Scudetto this season?
23:44We'll see whether we're ready come May, because ultimately the league table will determine that.
23:51The best team always wins the Scudetto.
23:55The league table never lies.
23:57It doesn't matter whether we feel we're ready or not.
23:59Ultimately, it's about getting results now.
24:01As for Stefano Pioli, I've got a good relationship with Stefano.
24:07I'd like to congratulate him.
24:08I've already congratulated him because he was the last coach to win the Scudetto here,
24:12and it's not commonplace to win Scudetti.
24:15And I think he'll ultimately do a very good job at Fiorentina.
24:20Hi, coach.
24:21I'd like to come back to the Juventus game where, besides Santi Jimenez's performance, I was really struck by the team's response after Pulisic's missed penalty.
24:34These are situations whereby the team can disband, whereas actually the players reacted with strength and they kept attacking Juventus.
24:42And that showed that they've got a real top-team mentality.
24:45Do you agree with that?
24:47And can you kick on from that?
24:49No, rather than kick on from that, we need to continue with what we've been doing since the 11th of July.
24:54We've been working day in, day out.
24:57The players are following us.
24:59They're showing a lot of desire to improve, above all, to secure our target, which is to finish in the top four, which is not easy,
25:10because there are a number of very well-equipped teams in the race for Champions League football.
25:16After the penalty against Juventus, Milan, the team, we did a very good job, because we immediately started attacking after that mistake.
25:28So we managed those unforeseen circumstances, namely the missed penalty.
25:34Milan vibes.
25:36Hi, coach.
25:36I wanted to ask you how much the individual players come down to what you're able to propose as a team.
25:45So you're without Rabiot, you're without Pulisic, who have always played.
25:48How will their replacements change what you're able to propose on the pitch?
25:54It will change because they have a different skill set.
26:00If we have Adrian Rabiot, Christian Pulisic with certain qualities, then maybe you might ask them to play in a certain way.
26:07If there are other players, then you request something different.
26:10And what matters is that when you go out onto the pitch, everyone needs to make sure they're able to do what they want within their own skill set.
26:24Tomorrow, there are players that are able to produce a good performance, the players I have available to select.
26:29Last question with Carlo Peligatti.
26:31Good afternoon.
26:32Good afternoon.
26:36I read a few excerpts of Corto Mutismo, Winning by a Nose, that comes out at the end of November.
26:44And on page 26, there was also a survey, a poll that said how much faith do you have in Massimiliano Allegri?
26:5336% are in favour, you're only behind Giorgio Meloni, who has a 41% approval rate.
27:01So, where does this faith come from that you're able to convey to people?
27:06Because there's the risk that if you win the league, you might actually go beyond to Giorgio Meloni.
27:12I'm never going into politics.
27:14That said, I don't know, because of Tuscany, but it's nice to hear that.
27:27In this press conference, you've been able to calm everything down.
27:33You said we mustn't overblow the issue.
27:37Have you calmed down?
27:38Would you have been angrier previously in your career?
27:41Where does it come from?
27:41No, it comes from the fact that those players aren't available, so we need to find a solution.
27:47But they're not there numerically.
27:54Because the team needs to do a job whereby if one player is not available, not everyone can play 38 games,
28:02but the players need to make sure that they are available.
28:07Everyone needs to know that they are important within the squad for the Milan course,
28:11and everyone needs to make themselves available based on their skill set.
28:16So there are no absentees.
28:18There are four players tomorrow that are having a rest, and they'll have a month off.
28:26I don't know.
28:27Ask them.
28:28Thank you very much, everyone.
28:29Bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye, bye,
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