AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli has claimed that the Rossoneri are now cured of their poor form and the players are enjoying their football again.
Speaking after the match against Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday night to Sky Sport (via Milan News), the Milan coach seemed enthused by the 1-0 victory thanks to Brahim Diaz’s early goal at San Siro.
He discussed the way that the team tried to play with an increased intensity for the Champions League round of 16 first leg and went on to address the poor form and attitude the team has exhibited in recent weeks.
“In our mentality we want to be intense, we tried to be aggressive. We accepted many duels. We like to play this way and at certain levels you have to play this kind of football,” Pioli said.
“The players are finally back to smiling and playing with more lightness after the pressure we had created for ourselves: we got a bit down when things didn’t go our way, the team is definitely better now and we’ll be back to playing the kind of football I like. For me, Milan is cured from what I see in training. We’re back a great team, it’s right that a lot is expected of us.”
One player that was particularly impressive was Malick Thiaw who started in the back three and was tasked with defending against the likes of Harry Kane, Heung-min Son and Dejan Kulusevski. Pioli discussed the importance of talented young players.
“Malick is a guy who has always worked very well. Guys who believe in it and who maybe suffer from playing little but train even harder eventually come out. The club has invested in talented youngsters, but when you take talented young foreigners who are used to different things, unfortunately not everyone can be ready right away. Kalulu and Leao needed their path, in Italy it is hard to wait, but I always have faith in my boys,” he said.
The left side of the team was reinvigorated as Rafael Leao and Theo Hernandez posed a serious threat throughout.
“We wanted pairs on the outside. If we were central defending with three defenders we had to move a lot. We tried to send Diaz behind the two centre-backs and Leao with some freedom, knowing that when our left flank gets going we have quality,” Pioli explained.
Bald man, boldly claims they are cured. After two 1:0 wins. Monza shouldn’t represent a challenge, but it probably will, and Atalanta is next. Fiorentina and Tottenham again after. Those will be true measure if and how much team is cured.
I get that everyone is excited, but we beat the team that is in an even bigger crisis than we are, while it may be an indication that we’re on the right track, we are so very far from being “cured”.
How do you benefit personally from these “reality checks”?
Surely you’d get more out of getting lost in the moment than being captain sensible?
Is the feeling of superiority when you say “I told you so” really a better sensation than simply enjoying the moment???
Only a fool “enjoys a sensation” without reflecting and analyzing how it came to that sensation.
Was it deserved? Was it luck? Were we really better, or was the opponent just worse? Can we learn from it and is it an indication enough that something truly changed or at least started to change? Is it enough? Will it be enough in the future? Where to go from here, what to improve, what to change? How to prepare for next challenge? We have a series of really challenging games and we are coming from a streak of really bad results, how to keep the team fresh and motivated even if they don’t deliver in one of those?
So you enjoy getting lost in the moment, I’ll enjoy it when there are no more trophies to be won.
So when we won the title last year were you fuming that we hadn’t gone undefeated, or set a points record, or goals scored record? Were you upset that we didn’t average 70% possession? Did you lament that we didn’t have the capocannoniere on our team? Just curious. Try having a beer or smoking a spliff. Get laid. Relax man. Enjoy life sometimes. You may not have it tomorrow.
I enjoyed it immensely… And then the god damn transfer window started, and Messias was brought on permanent deal. And the whole saga with CDK and last minute transfers and… ugh. Yeah horror.
Do you have any control over all those things?
The only thing you have control over is yourself, your own feelings and reactions.
You don’t have control over how your team plays, or your team’s transfer activity (a place where so many “realists” seem to spend their time endlessly fantasising about), or your team’s ownership situation (another great cause for speculation).
All you have control over is your immediate response to the moment. That is why we should just focus on the moment.
Plus, to be clear, all of these things you’re thinking are pure speculation as neither you nor anyone else can predict the future.
Quite the reverse. Only a fool worries about things that are beyond their control.
Do you have any control over all those things?
The only thing you have control over is yourself, your own feelings and reactions.
You don’t have control over how your team plays, or your team’s transfer activity (a place where so many “realists” seem to spend their time endlessly fantasising about), or your team’s ownership situation (another great cause for speculation).
All you have control over is your immediate response to the moment. That is why we should just focus on the moment.
Plus, to be clear, all of these things you’re thinking are pure speculation as neither you nor anyone else can predict the future.
We’re obviously not gonna agree on something as fundamental as this. I mean we are polar opposites. But, we can agree to disagree.
I will continue to ask nasty questions, I will continue to raise concerns, and I will continue to be the rain cloud, while you enjoy your moments. And I hope there will be many, many more of those for you to enjoy.
While doubt it, since there is something systemically broken in our beloved club and no amount of wishful thinking is gonna fix it. But hay, maybe I’m wrong. It has happened on more than a few occasions.
The same Tottenham that defeated current premiership champions Manchester city hun …. Man chill , pioli is on fire 🔥
He knows the job more than you do
Except its not the same. Their key players are missing. Basically their entire midfield is injured.
You dont know football…ask yourself as Milan ever played with a true complete squad or have you forgotten maignan is a very key player?? If you don’t know football don’t preach it okay.
You don’t know reading… ask yourself have I really talked about Milan in my post, at all, or did i only state a fact about Tottenham? Have you ever read a complete post that contains more than two sentences and understood it completely before you started typing your verbal diarrhea? Have you forgotten some of the letters of the alphabet, or do you just reply to random things?? If you don’t know how to read, don’t preach it okay.
Here is an elaborate reply, that has nothing to do with Milan and everything to do with Tottenham.
Tottenham was not the same as they were against Man City, which is a fact. They are not only missing their Goalkeeper which impacted them very little, they are missing key players in the midfield. Højbjerg, Bentancur, Sessegnon even Bissouma. All starters all higher in the pecking order above Skipp and Sarr. So their entire engine and creativity was missing.
So what I said in my post was a fact, the one you chose to ignore, or you’re just unable to comprehend.
Why in the hell that we start winning after we bench our captain? Last year with Alessio and this year with Davide
What the hell is wrong with our captains? LOL
So happy btw we break our negative trends and become solid again!
I’m beginning to take note of that. To be sincere, Calabria has been our worst defender. We started loosing when he returned from injury. He should continue to be benched and only played when we are playing weak team or leading by good goal margin.
I believe it’s important we enjoy yesterday’s victory and start preparing for Monza. Regardless of our performance yesterday, we won. And that is most important. Let’s accept the outcome and hope for a positive future.
Pioli deserves our support and well wishes
Forever Milan❤️🤣