AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie has revealed that head coach Stefano Pioli has built a ‘family’ in the dressing room, with the help of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
The Ivorian showed his dominance once again on Thursday night as the Rossoneri ran out 3-1 winners over Celtic in their Europa League group stage opener in Scotland.
Rade Krunic got the first goal and Brahim Diaz doubled the advantage before the break, and Jens Petter Hauge sealed the three points with a late goal on the counter after the hosts had pulled one back.
Kessie was interviewed by Sky Italia after the game and was asked about a number of different topics, with his comments transcribed by MilanNews and translated below.
The 23-year-old was paired with Sandro Tonali for the game at Celtic Park, and the pair ended up settling down after a bit of a rocky opening from the Italian.
On his partner in midfield: “For me it’s the same, it’s always the same. We must always give our all. We hope to continue like this.”
On Ibrahimovic: “He helps us a lot, he’s a champion. He gives everyone a great hand, we hope he can play a lot with us to help us.”
On the growth of the locker room: “Football is like this, not all moments can be good. We have recovered, we are now a family, everyone works a lot in training, the presence of Ibra helps the team and the coach a lot.”
On Milan’s turning point: “After the lockdown we recovered well, we went fast, the coach tried to build a family. On the pitch we help each other. The coach is one of us, all the players are important, even those that don’t play. The coach knows how to manage the group.”
On scoring goals: “I hope to score more than last year. Even if I don’t take penalties, it’s okay, in front of me there is a champion who shoots. I can score even without penalties.”
