AC Milan striker Olivier Giroud has shared his feelings on the new players at the club following the defeat against Barcelona on Wednesday morning.
Speaking to Milan TV after the 1-0 defeat in which Ansu Fati scored the only goal of the game, the French striker discussed new players and his own fitness, as well as the tactical issues that the Rossoneri had.
He explained that Barcelona made Milan work hard and the way that Milan pressed was not as effective as it perhaps should have been.
“I’m feeling good, but I was a bit tired for this match. Barcelona made us run a lot. We can still improve in the pressing, maybe making it more compact and lower for this type of match. But we are working,” Giroud began.
Despite these negatives, he is happy with the new players in the team such as Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Tijjani Reijnders and Christian Pulisic.
“I am very happy with the new lads in the team. They have a good mentality. Today effectiveness made the difference. We could have been more precise in the last choice and in the final third, too bad… We could have equalised. We still have some time to prepare and be even better,” Giroud explained.
When asked specifically about Reijnders, a player many have been impressed by in pre-season, he had praise for the Dutchman whilst also mentioning the quality that Noah Okafor and Samuel Chukwueze will bring when they come into the action.
“Tijjani is doing very well, with Okafor and Chukwueze we are stronger than last year. We simply have to find a relationship on the court with our mentality and the way we play,” he said.
🗣️ "Lots of time to get ready for the season opener"@_OlivierGiroud_'s thoughts following #MilanBarcelona #ACMTour #SempreMilan pic.twitter.com/izWUmjLVCm
— AC Milan (@acmilan) August 2, 2023
