AC Milan boss Marco Giampaolo was happy with what he saw in his side’s 1-0 defeat to Benfica in Foxborough on Sunday.
Adel Taarabt got the decisive goal in the second half through a deflected shot, with Milan having missed several opportunities to take the lead.
It means the Rossoneri have played two games without scoring in the International Champions Cup, but the new head coach is not worried.
Giampaolo told Milan TV: “Today, the result doesn’t say anything because it doesn’t show the attitude that the team had. For as long as that attitude was on show, I liked what I saw from the team.
“In terms of how we played, this isn’t a defeat. We played in attack, looking to dominate the play. The guys did very well and went beyond my expectations.
“This is the first piece, we did a lot of things better compared to the first match, both on and off the ball.
“A lot of work is needed. The team needs to get used to defending in a different way and it takes time to bring all the different mechanisms together.
“We created a lot in attack, I’ve kept track of all the chances created and I’m not worried that we haven’t scored. We’ll look at our mistakes and fix them to get better.
“The team has worked very well and I’m happy. The next games will help us to improve our conditioning, chemistry and game management.
“We need to integrate the players who aren’t here now as best we can. I repeat, the team is further forward than I expected because the players have great quality.
“They understand, take things on and easily apply what I ask. I liked what I saw from Borini, Biglia and Calhanoglu and I liked the midfield in general.”
