AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli has urged his team to give everything to tick off the first objective of the season, and spoke again about his decision to bring Rafael Leao off at half-time in the Torino defeat.
The fifth round of group stage games saw Milan win 4-0 against Dinamo Zagreb and Salzburg lose at home to Chelsea, which makes the equation simple: the Rossoneri must avoid defeat against the Austrian champions to finish second and reach the Champions League knockout stages.
However, it will not be easy against a side that have been in rampant form domestically and have caused problems to the other teams in the group as well as Milan, given they took the lead in Austria through Noah Okafor before Alexis Saelemaekers’ equaliser.
Pioli spoke to the media at his pre-match press conference on the eve of the game this afternoon, with his comments relayed by MilanNews and translated below.
Is there a desire for redemption after the defeat in Turin?
“Doing well tomorrow night would mean a lot because it is our first goal of the season. We have built this possibility, we have the opportunity to reach the second round. There is disappointment for the Torino defeat, but now there is only great concentration for tomorrow night.”
Tonali said you shouldn’t think that a draw is enough. He is right?
“He’s right, we don’t play like that, we don’t know how to spare ourselves, but we have to enter the field and attack. We don’t have to change our way of playing.”
What did the players say to you after the renewal?
“The credit belongs to everyone. The club is giving me great confidence. I am very happy with the renewal. I thanked the players because without them this renewal would not have been possible. We have started our three-year journey, now we really want to achieve a season target tomorrow night.”
What do you fear for tomorrow’s match?
“We have to field the best possible performance. They have very specific qualities, but we have to play with our characteristics. We will need great determination and clarity in our choices.”
Can this Milan do without Leao, after he came off at half-time in Turin?
“He is a great player. Tomorrow he will be in top condition and like everyone else he will give his best to reach our goal.”
Here at Milanello there is the statue of Nereo Rocco. After the renewal you could overcome his record, is this your new goal?
“I gave myself this dream and I want to continue living it.”
How is Leao? Did you have to tell him anything after Torino?
“I didn’t have to tell him anything. I saw him well. We analysed the Torino defeat. If the opponents think about seeing Milan like in Turin they will be disappointed. Leao is fine as well as the others.”
Your renewal came after the defeat in Turin and before the decisive match against Salzburg…
“I also appreciated this very much, just as I appreciated that the club could extend my contract for a year and instead did it for a longer time. It is an important sign, I hope that our journey together is only at the beginning. We want to make Milan bigger and bigger with ever more ambitious goals. I have to thank the owners and the club, here I feel appreciated and respected and this is fundamental for a coach.”
Your Milan have always bounced back after a defeat…
“We are a strong team with important values. We know the difficulties we will find, but we have great motivations and then we will play in front of our fans. We have all the cards to do well.”
Hope we are also training on how to park the bus in the latter stages of a game because sometimes you just need to secure the result 😁
We will win this match simple reason that we are the better team ,we have a great manager .
We will have the experience of that incredible centre forward Olivier Giroud..this man is the best centre forward around anywhere ,and knows exactly where to be at the right time ,,this is a great skill Olivier possess and not luck ..When Oliver starts the game the team looks much more balanced and organised.
Also great news that alongside him we have the incredible Rafael Leao who can open up any defence .
He seems to have real understanding with Olivier .
This will be Olivier Girouds day we will not only win the game but he will score again .I hope Messias also plays on the opposite flank to Leao ..so plenty of pace and ability to supply the ammo ..
We do not just not want to qualify for the last 16 ,but at least to the last eight .We have the team and ability.
Forget about the last game ..it’s looks like we will field our best team ..So yes stay optimistic all fans ,the new journey begins .