AC Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri has admitted Christian Pulisic is a doubt for the game against Torino, in which he expects a crucial response.
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Milan head into Monday night’s game at the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino having lost their last game, something that they have only experienced twice this season. The Coppa Italia run came to an end at the hands of Lazio on Thursday night, so a response is expected.
The Rossoneri still have a 12-game unbeaten run going in the league, and they have the chance to remain in top spot which they seized after beating Lazio in Serie A last Saturday. However, Milan’s record of 1 win in their last 12 away league games against Torino tells its own story.
Allegri’s words
Allegri spoke to the reporters who gathered at Milanello for his pre-match press conference on the eve of the trip to Piedmont, and his comments were relayed by MilanNews.
Is this another crucial match after a loss, like the one against Udinese?
“We need to be ready to play a solid game. Tomorrow we’ll face a team… There are some numbers we’ll try to reverse. In the last 12 years, six draws, five defeats, and just one win. In the last three years, Milan has lost three times. We need to approach them with great humility.
“Torino are a very physical team; playing at their home ground right now is very difficult; they’re coming off a string of negative results. We need to play a very solid game. We’ve reached a point in the season where, between now and the end of January, the table will be decided.”
Can you give us an injury update?
“We hope to have Gimenez back as soon as possible. He’s an important player, and we need him in terms of numbers. Both technically and numerically. Pulisic had a fever last night, so we’ll see if he’ll be available or not. Athekame is completing his recovery. We hope to have Fofana back against Sassuolo.
“Between tomorrow and Sassuolo, we have a very important week ahead of us. We need to have the right mentality and play with humility, knowing that winning these two games is very important because then we’ll be playing the Supercoppa.”
The table remains tight, how can Milan pull away?
“I don’t know, it depends on the winning streaks we manage to achieve. Inter and Napoli are the best equipped to win the league. There are many teams within a few points of the top spot, just as there are many teams within a few points of the bottom. It’s an anomaly. We’ll have to have the strength to stay there.”
How did the team react to the defeat? What do you think of Fabregas’s comments after yesterday’s defeat? He said he’d rather lose than all-out defend…
“I didn’t hear what Fabregas said; he’s doing a great job against Como. It’s important for us to follow up on the results. On Thursday against Lazio, we paradoxically played better, but we didn’t have the determination to get the result.
“It should be seen as an opportunity for improvement. When the team plays with great respect and determination, you rarely concede goals from set pieces.”
Are the midfielders missing goals?
“We started well with Loftus-Cheek against Lecce on set pieces, then we stalled. They’ll do it, they’ll come, they have it in their characteristics. We need to improve on set pieces, we’re not scoring very many goals.
“Against Lazio, we took risks in the league and conceded on Thursday: we need to improve. It’s also important to play defensively as a team. On Thursday, in my opinion, the team played one of their best defensive games.
“There was a positive note on Thursday, but it’s not enough: we need to continue improving both phases of play and we need to be clear about our objective, which is the result.”
Rabiot still hasn’t scored…
“Adrien is improving his condition. His goals will come, as will Loftus’s. Loftus had two chances on Thursday: he needs to be more confident in his abilities. We expect a lot from him.”
Are you satisfied, or is something missing?
“I’m not completely satisfied because we all shouldn’t be satisfied: we have to work to improve. The right things remain, the wrong things need to be improved, and we need to work on that. We need to have the conviction to improve every day.
“Nothing is impossible, everything is possible, you have to do your best to achieve what seems impossible. We have to work to the maximum of our ability. But you need to have the conviction. If you don’t have the conviction, you do your best, but not your best.
“As I’ve said many times, I repeat, there’s no such thing as maintaining performance: there’s only improving or getting worse. This is an important moment of the season, we need to conserve our mental energy: when we go on the pitch, matches are played through our feet and our minds.
“Our desire is fundamental: what is our desire? That next year, by hook or by crook, Milan must return to the Champions League.”
Who will replace Fofana?
“I’m happy for Jashari; he’s made a good return. I think it was his first time in that role; he’s always played in a two-man midfield or as a central midfielder. He has a lot of room for improvement. Ricci is an intelligent and reliable guy, which is very important for a coach.
“When you put a reliable player on the pitch, especially mentally, he knows what he can bring, whether he’s starting or coming on as a substitute. Ruben is someone who needs to be even more convinced of his qualities. He needs to be confident in what he does.”
Nkunku is struggling to get going…
“Let’s leave aside the investment, I’m talking about the player who has extraordinary technical qualities. He arrived later. He played a good match against Lazio at San Siro. He also needs to convince himself that he has to be decisive.
“His technical qualities, just look at how he stops or passes, no one can argue with that. We need guys who are confident in what they do to achieve the team’s objective. I’m happy with Nkunku and I’m convinced he can do well; maybe he can score tomorrow.”
What is happening with Santiago Gimenez? Did you see Ordine’s words on him?
“Professor Ordine is always ironic (laughs). Santiago is working hard, we hope to partially rejoin the team this week. His ankle is fine. We hope to have him back, we need him. He’s a reliable player, he’s worked hard for the team.
“He’s had plenty of chances, he’s had three goals disallowed by a centimetre, he’s scored a lot for Feyenoord, it’s not like he’s forgotten how to score goals. Gimenez needs to return, we’re waiting for him and hope he can partially rejoin the team this week.”
Your record against Torino is good…
“The positive numbers were when I was coaching Juventus. It’s absolutely not a derby for me. It’s a difficult match for everyone, not for me. It’s a match with a very important result: once we’re clear on that, it will be easier.”
Is there an ideal striker for this Milan side?
“We’ve talked about it many times. Of true centre-forwards between Juventus and Milan, but also at Cagliari, I only had one, Higuain. Mandzukic was varied, he also played left wing. Ibrahimovic, Robinho, Cassano, and Pato… Ibra was much better at sending the others forward, he became a centre-forward in his old age.
“It’s a question of characteristics, I have to try to put them in the best possible conditions. The important thing, however, is to score goals. Right now, two of the four forwards we have have scored 10 goals, we need goals from Nkunku, Gimenez, the midfielders, and the defenders.
“At the end of the season, to be there you have to score a certain number of goals and concede fewer. I’ve never seen a team win or finish in the top positions with a minimal goal difference, and that’s mathematically.”
How are the players who arrived in the summer and have played less? Have they integrated into the group well?
“We started as a group, we’ve become a team, and we can still improve. There are players who may struggle a bit with less playing time, but the important thing is that when they get going, they’re mentally involved in the game.
“In Rome, we were a bit hasty at the end of the game; we needed to manage the ball better and play better. We shouldn’t focus on what happened, but on what will happen, which is the match against Torino.”
There was a lot of controversy, with Lazio angry about the defeat at San Siro and then they scored from a non-existent corner…
“I smiled after the match, because on Saturday, in the penalty decision, a corner that was actually a corner was taken away from Lazio, while on Thursday we were eliminated for a corner that wasn’t a corner. Football was invented by a devil, there are certain combinations… But we laughed about it.”
A striker in January?
“There’s still a month to go, we have an important week with these two matches.”
Is team’s compactness pleasing?
“Regarding this defensive aspect, I told the boys that it’s a team issue, not a defender issue. To win, you have to get your shorts dirty, otherwise you won’t get a result. If we leave the pitch clean, you won’t get a result.
“When we don’t have the ball, we all have to defend together, like the boys are doing. But we have to keep working and improving; every game has two challenges: you have to stay focused on the final objective, taking one small step at a time.
“Without getting depressed after defeats, we were very disappointed after the loss in the Coppa Italia, but tomorrow we have an opportunity to continue our progress in the league.”
Will we see Milan’s Scudetto credentials in the upcoming matches?
“It’s not a matter of five games; after those five, there are still 19 to go. We need 74-76 points for the Champions League, then I don’t know how many we’ll need for the league. The ambition must be maximum, which is normal for Milan, but we need to have a clear objective.
“Milan must play in the Champions League next year, which is not easy: there are some very competitive and well-equipped teams. We need to be a united front where nothing gets in.”
Explain Fofana’s importance to you…
“Fofana is criticised for occasionally making technical errors, but he’s a player with intensity, and he was also very good at creating the goals against Lazio and Napoli. I think, given his potential, he needs to have the ambition to do much more, to score goals, to be more present in the defensive phase.
“He won’t be there tomorrow, it’ll be a player with perhaps different characteristics, but he’ll be useful to the team.”
What is the difference in intensity between Milan’s first and second halves?
“I’d like to dominate for 95 minutes, not give the opponent any shots, but that’s not the case. There are also moments when the opponent dominates. And what happens then? You have to defend as a team: it’s a crucial moment in the match.”
Do Milan only have one attacking line? Are you considering changes, other approaches?
“We can change our characteristics a little. When we find ourselves in situations like the one against Lazio, you have to be good at scoring if you get three chances.
“When you have five or six chances, that’s the average; you rarely get more clear chances. Against Roma and in other matches, we had some pretty clear chances, and that’s where we need to improve.”