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00:00Good morning, everyone. Welcome along to this pre-match press conference ahead of Torino-Milan.
00:05We'll start with questions from Milan TV. Thank you, Nicola. Good morning, coach.
00:10In September, before the Udinese game, you spoke about crucial games, turning points in the season.
00:18I don't know whether Torino is also in the same category,
00:23but after your first two consecutive away wins in Lecce and Udine,
00:27Milan have run out of a bit of steam. Are you ready to start winning again on the road?
00:34No, we need to be ready to produce a performance where we're solid,
00:39because first and foremost, we're up against a team whose numbers will try and overturn our statistics.
00:48Over the last 12 years, Milan have had six draws, five defeats, and only won once in 2021.
00:57During Covid, 7-0 away at Torino. In the last three years, Milan have lost three times at Torino,
01:05so we need to keep our feet on the ground tomorrow, have the utmost respect for Torino.
01:10In the knowledge that we're up against a team that have some excellent technical players,
01:15they're a very physical side.
01:16It's very difficult playing at their stadium at this moment in time,
01:23because they're on the back of a negative run of results.
01:27So we need to produce a real concrete performance, with lots of substance,
01:32and we need to keep our goal in mind, because we've got to a stage of the season whereby,
01:36from today onwards, until the end of January, it will be a period where the league table starts to take shape.
01:49So we need to do a good job to make sure that we stay in the top four positions.
01:55Sky, hi coach.
01:57Usual two quick questions.
01:59Can you give us the latest in the treatment table?
02:01And second, you are now talking about finishing in the top four this season.
02:08Do you think that this Serie A season will be this way throughout the entire campaign?
02:13There won't be a runaway leader, or do you think sooner or later,
02:17one team will be able to go on a slightly more consistent winning run?
02:20I don't know, to be honest.
02:23It depends on the winning streaks that teams are able to produce.
02:28It's only natural that Inter and Napoli are the best equipped teams to win the Scudetto.
02:37There are currently a number of teams all grouped together within a few short points of one another,
02:44just as there are down at the bottom end of the table as well.
02:47That's slightly anomalous when it comes to Serie A.
02:49And that's why there will come a time when the league leaders pull clear.
02:57That's why we need to show strength to stay in the hunt,
03:01which is why tomorrow's match is very important for our league position.
03:05As for the treatment table, we hope to have Santi Jimenez available as soon as possible,
03:10because he's an important player for Milan.
03:12And above all, in terms of numbers up top, we need him,
03:15besides the fact that technically he's a good player,
03:19but also in terms of sheer weight of numbers.
03:22As for tomorrow, Christian Pulisic had the flu overnight.
03:28We'll see whether or not he's available for selection tomorrow.
03:31Everyone else is available.
03:33Zachary Atakame is returning to full fitness.
03:37Youssef Fofana, we hope he'll be back available for the Sassuolo game.
03:42Otherwise, he will be there in Riyadh for the Super Cup.
03:45We have a very important week between tomorrow and the Sassuolo game.
03:50So we need to think first and foremost about our goals.
03:54Our first target is to try and get two results.
03:56And in order to do so, we need to be in the right frame of mind.
04:02And we need to play games with humility in the knowledge that getting positive results
04:10in these next two games would be very important,
04:13because after that, we'll then be off to Saudi Arabia to play the Super Cup.
04:20We will bring it with us.
04:21Otherwise, you'll all have a go at us, but we'll see tomorrow.
04:25Dazon, hi, coach.
04:29I wanted to figure out how frustrated the team were when you'd lost a game,
04:35because we were all in shirt sleeves and it was 35 degrees the previous time you lost.
04:40How have they reacted to a rare defeat?
04:43And did you hear what Cesc Fabregas said yesterday
04:46when he said that he prefers to lose 4-0 as opposed to sitting back and defending?
04:52I haven't heard what Fabregas has said.
04:56I think he's doing an excellent job with Como.
04:58So it's not up to me to judge what he said yesterday.
05:04All I would say is, for us, it's important to make sure we get results consistently.
05:10Thursday night's game against Lazio, rather counterintuitively,
05:14we actually played better football, and we had three or four opportunities.
05:21However, we didn't have that killer instinct, that cutting edge to bring home a result.
05:28And we need to see that as an opportunity to improve.
05:31Because when the team play with a lot of respect,
05:36with that cutting edge to try and get a result,
05:41you're very unlikely to concede a goal from a set-piece.
05:44Mediaset.
05:45Hi, Max.
05:46I'd like to ask you whether this team,
05:52where you've really sorted them out defensively, above all in midfield,
05:56whether in the final third,
05:59it really comes down to the flair of Christian Pulisic and Liao.
06:05Christian Ferencuncu has had issues in terms of settling in.
06:10He came in late.
06:11I'd like to ask you whether this team is actually lacking goals from midfield,
06:16the wide players.
06:19You did ask Loftus-Cic and Rabiot to score 10 goals.
06:24We saw Cialanolo and Carlos Augusto score for Inter.
06:27Are you missing those goals from midfield?
06:29We made a good start with Loftus-Cic,
06:31who scored at Lecce from a set-piece.
06:35And then we stopped there.
06:37They will certainly score goals.
06:39Those goals will come from midfielders,
06:41because they have it in their skill set.
06:43We need to improve dead-ball situations,
06:45because we scored very few goals from set-pieces.
06:48And we also ran a lot of risks against Lazio on Saturday in the league,
06:56with that save from Mignon early on.
06:58And we conceded from a corner on Thursday against the same opposition.
07:01So we need to improve on that score.
07:03The most important thing is to play performances as a team.
07:07On Thursday, Milan produced one of their best displays defensively.
07:15We only had two chances against us in the first half,
07:20when we misplaced passes and trying to build out from the back.
07:23And then late on with Tijani Noslin,
07:25but we were chasing the game at that stage.
07:27It was late on.
07:27So there was a positive note to Thursday's night,
07:32but that's not enough.
07:32We need to keep improving defensively as well.
07:35We need to keep improving offensively.
07:38And above all, as I said, for the third time,
07:42we need to keep our target in mind.
07:44Results, that's what matters.
07:45Would you like, is it about time that Adrian Rabiot scored a goal now?
07:50Adrian's improving his fitness levels.
07:54Adrian will certainly start to score goals just as Loftus-Cheek will.
07:57Loftus-Cheek had two big chances on Thursday with his head to score a goal.
08:01He needs to have greater belief in terms of the potential
08:05and the quality that he possesses,
08:06so he have great expectations from him.
08:10Corriere da sera.
08:11Hi, Max.
08:12We're already into match day 14 of Serie A,
08:18so we're already a third of the way into the season.
08:21So I'd like to ask you, compared with your pre-season plans,
08:24how far along are your Milan side?
08:26Not in terms of the league position,
08:28because you often say, let's see where we are in March,
08:30but in terms of mentally, physically, tactically,
08:35how far along are you and what are you still missing,
08:38if you are missing something,
08:39or whether you're completely happy with what you've done?
08:42No, I'm not completely happy,
08:44but not because I mustn't be pleased,
08:47because none of us should be satisfied with what we've done,
08:50because every day that we come to Milanella,
08:52we need to work hard to improve and get better,
08:55because typically, when you do things that are either right or wrong,
08:58the right things remain.
09:00The things that you've done badly, you need to improve upon,
09:02so we need to work upon our shortcomings, what we've got wrong,
09:06because with every passing day, we must have that belief that we can improve.
09:13I always say that everyone needs to work hard to get the utmost,
09:18and I say that nothing is impossible.
09:19Anything is possible.
09:23We need to make sure that we actually give our all to try and achieve what seems impossible,
09:29so we need to strive towards 10.
09:32If we don't get to 10, if you're working towards 10,
09:35it means that you can actually reach the utmost of your potential,
09:40but in order to do so, you need to have the belief that you can achieve that.
09:43If you don't have that, it's very difficult.
09:47Maybe you give your all, but it's not your absolute all,
09:51and we need to work on that day in, day out to improve.
09:56And only then can the team improve day in, day out.
10:00And as I said many times, I'll say it again,
10:03I'm getting like a broken record,
10:06but there's no such thing as maintenance.
10:08You either get better or you get worse.
10:09There's no such thing as maintenance.
10:11And we need to work on that.
10:13Because this is a very important time in the season.
10:18You need to try and save some mental energy,
10:21because when you go out there on the pitch,
10:23every single football match, besides your feet,
10:26above all, it starts with your mindset, your head.
10:32Wanting things is absolutely crucial.
10:34You need to work towards that.
10:36And our desire is what?
10:37To make sure that Milan must be involved in the Champions League.
10:45Rightly or wrongly.
10:46Welcome to the Gazzetta, Marco Guidi.
10:48Gazzetta.
10:49Hi, coach.
10:50This is maybe the first time with someone missing in midfield,
10:57Fofana, you actually have opportunities in terms of selection,
11:01because Loftus-Cheek's been out, Yashari's been out.
11:03You've actually got three players that can replace him.
11:07Ricci, Loftus-Cheek and Yashari.
11:08Besides your team selection, what do they offer, these individual players?
11:11First and foremost, I'm pleased for Ardhan Yashari,
11:15because he produced a good performance on his return to first-team action.
11:20And I think that's the first time that he played in that position there,
11:22because he'd always played in a two-man midfield,
11:25or he'd been more of a positional number eight.
11:28And I think he has huge room for improvement.
11:32Samuel Erici is an intelligent kid, an intelligent player.
11:35He's a very reliable footballer, and he's very important for a coach.
11:40Because when you have reliable players that you can depend on,
11:43when you pick them, whether they start or they come off the bench,
11:48you know what they can offer.
11:50I'm not talking on a technical level, because someone can make mistakes,
11:53but above all, in terms of their mindset.
11:55And that needs to be our strength, regardless of whether someone makes mistakes.
11:59We all make mistakes.
12:00Ruben Loftus-Cheek is someone who needs to have even more belief
12:05in the ability that he possesses, because he's got great physical qualities.
12:09He's someone who should score goals.
12:10But as I said earlier on, he needs to really believe in what he's doing.
12:17Correo de los Porto.
12:19Hi, coach.
12:21With so many players missing in the final third, Jimenez is out.
12:26Pulisic is doubtful.
12:28You need even more of a helping hand from Nkunku.
12:30But thus far, it feels like he comes off the bench, but doesn't necessarily convince.
12:36Are you happy with his contribution?
12:38Where can he improve?
12:41Because it was a significant investment you made in him in the summer.
12:46Let's leave aside the investment.
12:47I'm talking about the player.
12:49He's a player who's got incredible technical ability.
12:51He joined a little bit later.
12:54As I said, the last home game that we played against Lazio, if I'm not mistaken,
13:02he played very well.
13:03Above all, in the crucial stage of the game, he was in the game and he played some important passes.
13:09But he's another player that also needs to have that conviction that he can be a match winner.
13:16Because you only need to see how he controls and passes the ball.
13:20There's absolutely no doubt about his technical quality.
13:23But we need players, guys, that really believe in what they're doing.
13:30Above all, to secure our team goal.
13:34So I'm happy with Christopher Nkunku.
13:36And I really believe that he can do a good job.
13:38He might be able to score even tomorrow night, for instance.
13:41Il Giornale.
13:43Hi, Max.
13:46I wanted to ask you.
13:55You had a special check-up with...
13:59Have you decided to have a check-up with Jimenez, not only in terms of his ankle, but in terms of his head?
14:05No, always with these sarcastic questions, Franco.
14:08No, Santiago is working.
14:11And next week we hope that we'll be able to re-incorporate him into the first-team squad.
14:20His ankle is fine.
14:21So we really hope to have him available for selection, because we need him.
14:29We need him, too.
14:30Even though he didn't score goals in the league at the start, he's a reliable player.
14:34He's worked a great deal for the team.
14:36When he's played, he's had chances.
14:39He's had three goals ruled out for inch decisions offside.
14:46He scored goals for Feyenoord.
14:48It's not that he's forgotten how to find the net.
14:49He came in in January.
14:51He had three months to settle in.
14:53It's not easy.
14:53There are players that hit the ground running and immediately fit in with the club environment.
15:00And there are others that struggle a little bit.
15:01But Santi Jimenez needs to come back.
15:03And we're waiting for him to do so.
15:05And we hope that he can partially train with the first-team squad next week.
15:08Hi, coach.
15:12Earlier on, you listed Milan's negative numbers at Torino, but your numbers are very positive.
15:2016 wins, 6 draws, and 1 defeat against Torino.
15:23Is that almost like a personal derby for you, given that you spent so many years with Juventus
15:28in Turin?
15:29No, those were numbers when I coached Juventus.
15:33It doesn't matter at all.
15:35It's certainly not a derby for me.
15:39It's a very difficult game, not for me, for everyone.
15:42Above all, knowing of just how important tomorrow's result is, that's the most important thing.
15:48Once we've got that clear in our mind, it's that much easier to produce a big performance.
15:55Hi, coach.
15:59A number of strikers have played this season.
16:01Liao and Kunku, Loftus-Cheek maybe a little bit more than Liao as centre-forward on Thursday
16:07against Lazio.
16:08Santi Menez has played there.
16:10Does this squad have a centre-forward that you're looking for in terms of the style of
16:15football you want to play with Milan?
16:16Do you have an ideal centre-forward in terms of the way you want this team to set up?
16:20We've spoken about it many times.
16:31Genuine strikers in terms of my time at Juventus and Milan, even Cagliari, I think I only had
16:37one, which was Gonzalo Higuain.
16:40Mario Mandzukic was someone who tended to wander.
16:43I even had him play left wing, the Milan Scudetto winning side, we had Robinho and Zlatan Ibrahimović
16:52or Antonio Cassano, Pato.
16:56Back then, Ibra was a lot better at actually setting up teammates.
17:04As he got older, he started to score more goals.
17:06It's not about the players' skill set.
17:10The players that have available for selection, based on their qualities, I need to try and
17:15put them in the best position to perform.
17:18Maybe having some midfielders breaking forward to score goals.
17:22But what matters is scoring goals.
17:27At this moment in time, of the four forwards that we have, two players have already scored
17:33ten goals, but we need goals from Santi Jimenez when he comes back, and Cuncu, the midfielders.
17:39We need some goals from defenders, from set pieces, so we need to strike dead balls a little
17:43bit better.
17:44We need everyone, because come the end of the season, in order to be there, we need to have
17:49scored X amount of goals, and we need to concede, as I always say, fewer.
17:54Because goal difference, 70 years ago, mattered.
18:00Now that football has obviously changed a great deal, it's a modern game, but I've never
18:04seen a team win something or finish up near the top of the table with a very minor goal
18:13difference.
18:14That's only maths, ultimately.
18:16Hi, coach.
18:21You can immediately see that this group of players has become a team, and that wasn't
18:26necessarily anything you could take for granted.
18:28There were lots of ins and outs, two players, Modric and Rabiot, two top-class players.
18:33But in terms of the young guys that have come in, Ricci and Cuncu, we've spoken about
18:38all of them, Maticame.
18:39How well have they settled in?
18:42Are you happy with that?
18:43Because I think we saw against Lazio some of the issues that those players have had
18:47that play less.
18:48I don't know whether it's necessarily because they have fewer minutes under their belt or
18:52because they need to try and come into a team environment.
18:57We started where we're a group of players and we've become a team, and we still need to
19:01improve.
19:02As for the fact that people coming into the side, there are certain players that have played
19:08fewer minutes and therefore they might struggle a bit more.
19:10But what matters is that they're actually mentally willing to go out there and really get into
19:17the thick of things.
19:19We did have some opportunities in Rome the other day against Lazio.
19:22We didn't make the most of them.
19:23We could have actually managed the game better in the last five minutes.
19:27We were a little bit hurried and hasty.
19:29We got a bit confused in general because it's only natural.
19:34Lazio wanted to get the win.
19:36They wanted to move into the quarterfinals.
19:37We had to come back into the game, but that's why we needed to manage the ball better and
19:41play better football as a result.
19:42But I am very happy with everyone.
19:44And above all, we mustn't think about what's gone Thursday's game, but rather what will be
19:50tomorrow against Torino.
19:54Two quick topics for Sunday lunchtime.
20:00A lot of chaos for a penalty which wasn't given.
20:05And then in Rome, an inexistent corner that Milan conceded a goal from.
20:11And what have you made about that?
20:14Today is Santa Ambrojo in Milan.
20:23What do you need to do in order to be on Santa's wish list and get a center forward?
20:29No, I'm working very hard.
20:32No, we're not going to talk about Christmas because we're still a month away from Christmas.
20:37And so we still have an important week with these two big games.
20:41As for chaos, confusion, I smiled after the game, made me chuckle because on Saturday when
20:48there was the penalty decision, Lazio were actually had a corner taken away from them
20:55that was a corner and we actually conceded from a corner that wasn't a corner on Thursday.
21:00So that's what's nice about football.
21:03Because that's when I say that football was invented by the devil.
21:06It's diabolical because there are some crazy scenarios.
21:11We laughed about that.
21:13But the most important thing is to try and get back to winning ways, get back on track.
21:18We have an opportunity to make further progress tomorrow and we need to produce a big performance
21:22to produce that technically, physically, because we're up against a very physical side and mental.
21:28Hi, Max.
21:35Everyone is asking questions about your forward line because, of course, the forward line is the area that's causing issues.
21:45You always tend to score one goal.
21:47You've been pretty good defensively as well.
21:50The same person now with Bartesaghi and the three centre-backs.
21:58And that really has been the foundations of this season so far.
22:01How pleased are you with these guys?
22:04And above all, they seem to be very together.
22:09They've shown a lot of solidarity amongst themselves.
22:11They tend to get on, buy in.
22:13With regards to how we defend, I asked the guys, I said it's not a case of defenders.
22:23It's about defending as a team.
22:25In order to win matches and to get results, you need to go away with some dirt on your shorts.
22:32Otherwise, you won't get a result because if you come off the pitch, spick and span, nice and clean, you won't get a result.
22:41Because either you play on artificial turf and we don't.
22:45So either you have dirt on your shorts, so when we don't have the ball, we all need to defend together as a unit, as the lads are doing.
22:52That doesn't mean that we're at the peak of our powers.
22:59No, we need to keep working hard and we need to continue to improve.
23:02There are unforeseen circumstances around the corner.
23:05Every game presents its own difficulties and there are lots of those.
23:09And that's why we need to stay in there, remain focused on what our ultimate goal is.
23:14And in order to reach it, we need to take things one small step at a time.
23:18We mustn't get too down in the dumps after a defeat.
23:21We were very disappointed because we were knocked out of the Coppa Italia.
23:23But tomorrow we have an opportunity to get back on track to continue our progress in Serie A.
23:33Hi, coach.
23:35You often talk about numbers in terms of goal difference.
23:39There are also the numbers in terms of number of points, draws and defeats.
23:45Between now and the midway point of the season, Milan have a slightly more manageable fixture list against teams in the bottom half of the season.
23:53You always talk about finishing in the top four.
23:56But in terms of Milan's Scudetto ambitions, will they be measured over the next five to six games between now and the midway point of the league season?
24:05If Milan are able to get a really positive run of results, in terms of you were saying about the league table, someone pulling clear, could that be an important sign?
24:14It's not a case of five matches because after those five games, there'll be a further 19 to be played.
24:22You need 76 points, 74 to 76 points to finish in the Champions League places.
24:28I don't know how many you'll need to win the Scudetto because it depends on the league leaders, how much of a winning run they can go on.
24:36We're thinking about things one small step at a time.
24:39Our ambition needs to be the utmost and that's only natural because when you're at a big club like Milan, you always need to strive for the top.
24:45But our target needs to be clear in mind because Milan next year must be playing Champions League football.
24:55It's not easy to secure that target because there are some battling teams, there are some sides that are very well equipped.
25:00And we need to make sure that we stay together as a unit and make sure that nothing comes between us.
25:09Hi coach, I'd like to come back to the midfield.
25:14Tomorrow you'll be without Fofana, as you've mentioned.
25:17He's a player who's much maligned.
25:20Why has he become such an important player for your team?
25:23And what qualities will you be missing in midfield tomorrow in his absence?
25:32Fofana is criticised because occasionally he makes some technical mistakes, but he's a player with a lot of intensity.
25:41Even in the way that the Lazio goal, the goal that we scored against Lazio is very important.
25:46He was very important in the goal we scored against Napoli as well.
25:49It's only natural that a player who, in my opinion, I might be wrong.
25:53In terms of the potential that he possesses, he needs to have the ambition to produce a lot more.
25:59To score goals, to be more of a presence defensively, but he is an important player.
26:06He's not available tomorrow.
26:07Someone else will play in his stead, maybe with a different skill set, but they'll certainly be useful for the team.
26:15Hi coach.
26:16This season, your Milan side have often been a little bit two-faced in your approach towards games,
26:26you know, increasing the tempo in the second half of matches.
26:29Is that a strategy for you as a coach due to having a slightly smaller squad compared with your rivals,
26:37or is there something else to this?
26:38No, there's the fact that I'd also like to dominate matches for the full 95 minutes,
26:45constantly have possession, constantly shoot on opposition goals, not afford the opposition chances.
26:50But unfortunately, that's not the case, because it's impossible.
26:53There does come a time when the opposition are on top.
26:56So what happens at that moment in time?
26:58You defend.
26:59How do you defend?
27:00You have to defend well as a team, because it's at moments like that that you can actually jeopardise the full-time result.
27:06It's crucial to be able to read the game and read the stage of the match.
27:10Last question with Carlo Pelegatti.
27:13Hi, Max.
27:17You need to have a whole different assortment when it comes to trying to win with a stable of horses,
27:24and people say that diversification is important in the stock market as well.
27:30The question, Lazio showed a little bit how to stop Milan, they closed down passing lanes.
27:38Are you not wary of the fact that other coaches with different players might be able to figure out how to stop Milan,
27:46and whether you're already studying possible tweaks, different formations, different systems,
27:55or is this going to be your Milan side with this personnel?
27:59No, we can certainly change things in terms of the players' skill sets.
28:03It's only natural that when you find situations like we encountered against Lazio in tight games,
28:10you need to do a good job.
28:12When you have three opportunities like we had, we had three goal-scoring opportunities in the second half,
28:17you need to score goals.
28:18It's not always easy to score goals with two or three chances.
28:23No, typically, on average, if you have five or six chances in a game, that's typically the average.
28:30It's hard to have a dozen opportunities.
28:32You might take 15 or 20 shots on the opposition goal, but you don't necessarily have that many clear-cut chances.
28:38But we need to improve our chance conversion rate, because during the game, not on Thursday against Lazio,
28:45where there were some chances where we could have done better,
28:50but against Roma, for instance, and in other games, we've had some pretty clear-cut chances,
28:54and that's where we certainly need to improve.
28:56Thank you very much, everyone.