AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli has hit back at those who have criticised his choices to rotate recently in the league, insisting he knows what he is doing.
Pioli has come under fire in recent weeks for his decision to heavily rotate the starting line-ups that he has fielded in the league either before or after Champions League commitments, resulting in dropped points against Empoli, Salernitana, Bologna and Cremonese.
It is the attack that seems to suffer in particular, with the Rossoneri having won just one of the games out of seven which Rafael Leao did not start in, showing just how important he is to the team as a source of goals.
Pioli spoke to the reporters who were present in the media room at Milanello for his pre-Lazio press conference and he was asked about his decision to chop and change so much, with his comments relayed by MilanNews.
“I know what I’m doing and why I’m doing it, I know how to take responsibility. There isn’t a Milan 1 or Milan 2. The performance wasn’t lacking, but the final result,” he said.
“I make my own assessments and I was convinced they were the right choices.”
He was also asked about whether the hectic schedule has heavily impacted his ability to balance the various commitments.
“It’s not a matter of scheduling. Each season makes its own story. We need to be lucid and say that we set off to win the league again. Last year we made the leap when we left the Champions League,” he said.
“This year we’re doing very well in Champions League. After January there was no consistency to fight to win the Scudetto. Only City among the European leaders can still win the Champions League and the league, we’re not at those levels there.”
We know what we are doing; we are loosing points and a place in next year’s ECL.
“The performance wasn’t lacking” clearly he doesn’t have a clue
You have my vote to be the next coach…you convinced me,for sure you are the man for the job…
Not to defend his questionable choices but if Diaz didn’t head it to the moon, Sala. Offside and CDK not finishing the story could of been different.
Sala being offsides isn’t bad luck it’s bad positioning, Diaz moon shot, not bad luck but a classic choke, CDK not developing at minimum half the coaches fault. I know Pioli is protecting his guys but at some point the coach and the players need to be accountable or there is no development and the team gets left behind.
Yeah sure it’s like titled: i Know What You Did This Summer…The pioli series :))
I appreciate that acronym 😁😂😂😂
Wow 😄
Wow. Even more delusional than I thought. Zero chance of admitting his mistakes.
To come out in this situation with that much arrogance says it all. As I said before, I think his arrogance is the main difference from last year. He lost his humility when he won the title and there’s no going back.
There isn’t a Milan 2? Ok then, start Vranckx, CDK, Balo Toure, Origi against Inter and we’ll believe you.
“I know how to take responsability”
Yeah, right.
So AC Milan pay aster,origi,CDK,Ballo toure,Rebic for what if not play ? They are so bad so they dont have to play and receive money just for training? Their job just training and watch the other 11 starter play full all match ? So they can have the best view of AC Milan match or cutting the grass on san siro ? Remember AC Milan pay their salary million euro to play not just sit on bench because some fan say they are trash
Yeah. Arrogant & delusional. That’s a great combo for a head coach, eh?
Im pretty sure he knows better than all the wannabe coaches and managers around here. If we can win tomorrow we will have a fairly good chance to qualify for cl as we will have have to meet several of the other top teams in serie a and we tend to do better against the stronger equipped teams of the league than against the bottom tier ones who often park the bus.
Inter will also have to play the coppa italia final may 24rth in between a match against napoli may 21rst and a match against bologna the 28th so their squad could easily get affected by that in an important time.
If we lose or draw tomorrow it would become difficult to qualify but overall i havent lost hope for either that or piolis role at the club.
What kind of logic is that?
He’s not competing against us, he’s competing against other top coaches. He has to know better than them, not better than us. But everyone who manages a bottom team has him figured out.
You don’t have to be a coach to be able to make some simple judgements.
For example, I can say without a doubt that Guardiola is a better coach than Gattuso, without having anything to do with coaching myself. Some thing are obvious even for outsiders.
sure you can argue that but why would i care about such views when they basically are based on disgruntlement and lack of patiience as we already has surpassed what had been expected of being possible to achieve in the forseeable future when this project was started. Stability in staff is of real importance and as iritated i am about this springs performances i still have faith in those at the helm of the club. Besides of that some fans here cares more about complaining than supporting their team and pretty much each and every thread on this site is filled with complaining and that even when things has been going our way.
“sure you can argue that but why would i care about such views”
Pretty much the same reason why anyone would care about your critique on “wannabe coaches here”.
“Besides of that some fans here cares more about complaining than supporting their team and pretty much each and every thread on this site is filled with complaining and that even when things has been going our way.”
That’s called venting. Letting out the steam. Try it sometimes. Don’t bottle all the anger inside.
touche and fair enough as it propably was a bit crass thing to say 🙂
You actually had me cracking up on the last comment of yours as i really dont have any repressed anger as im generally good at venting it 😀 But i just find it a bit funny that people complain all the time even when we do good which clearly isnt right now but you know what i mean so its not really that i was completely wrong either,
Yeah. On the internet it’s so easy to complain about anything. Even when there’s nothing to complain. That’s the modern days for you. 🙂
Yeah. On the internet it’s so easy to complain about anything. Even when there’s nothing to complain. That’s the modern days for you. 🙂
And yes, I know what you meant too and you do a point as well.
Thanks bb
I agree half of your statement. Pioli & Maldini must stay to continue their work for stability but only if AC Milan secure top 4 serie A or winning CL trophy ( hard but not imposible ) . If AC Milan fail to play in CL next season , i hope Redbird or elliot make some refreshing change on coach and DS. I respect Maldini as legend when he was player but as DS he must take responsibility choosing giampaolo & Pioli , dont forget worst transfer decision this season with bad signing. This is just my personal comment : Pioli with maldini & massara must out if AC Milan fail to play on CL next season , it is not fair if just pioli & his staff take full responsibility while he was given mediocre player as depth . If AC Milan success win CL trophy or finish top 4 serie A , i hope RedBird give pioli & Maldini / Massara bonus
I can understand that take a bit better if we actually doesnt qualify for cl next year but im not even sure that would be beneficial because beisdes of this springs ill performances nobody could have done a better job than what they have otherwise achieved with the means made available.
That is precisely what I was thinking. I am fairly certain that this man has more knowledge and experience than the majority of readers. He is in the presence of actual athletes, and other instructors that have direct contact with this team. There are many factors and elements that we cannot see. Obviously, some things deserve criticism, but I do not believe the coach should be the first target. Most of us enthusiastically applaus when our team wins and don’t complain, but when things don’t go our way, we lash out at the players and coaches. Remember, Pioli led the team to victory last season.
The lack of depth in the team’s squad and economy is primarily to blame for , because they dont invest.
Extra
I am also of the opinion that Charles has a promising future with this organization, and people should give him more time. I have seen him play significantly better than he did initially, so he is working.
There are certainly other individuals who, in my opinion, don’t do much, but this is whats given to Pioli right now.
I couldnt have said it better myself and agree with everything. Im annoyed about cdk’s season so far as i had expected him to fairly quickly become a success story but i also genuinely believe he could still have a future with us and i dont see him leaving this summer either.
Nope Pioli clearly doesn’t, the guys on here are calling his moves down to the minute he makes his his subs. Fking amateurs can predict his exact game plan!
“Fking amateurs can predict his exact game plan!”
And the outcome. Match after match. I guess the best thing to do here is start betting against Milan. Easy money.
We didnt draw the cremonese match because of the rotation as such, we drew it because kalulu tripped his own player in a dire moment and that in fact happened after several of the big names had entered the field. Has he handled rotaion perfectly this season , certainly not but the great majority of substitution players hasnt offered much when fielded either so its a double edged sword to manage this team,
Ahah these guys, we are in ECL semis, while still being in the race for top 4. If 2 yrs ago anyone would’ve said this was possible, you all would all be laughing in that persons face
Damn he’s turning into Allegri before our very eyes
I guess that means Pioli will start to look like Mr. Burns from the Simpsons too…?
“I was convinced they were the right choices”.
Only one word needed: Delusional.
Lol of course he knows what’s he’s doing in the sense that if he plays the guys that are not starters then it’s difficult to win but in that he also has to play them. What exactly is he supposed to say ? Yea I got it wrong and then loses the dressing room?, plus if he says that the confidence in the non starters drop further at a time when we need their help? Catch 22 as far as I see. If he says otherwise, it destabilizes the team. I think he’s also gambling that Inter runs out of steam before we meet them. They’ve been playing their starters all this time. Would be interesting to see how that goes. Would they be fresh or tired?
Everyone should calm down. Hes saying exactly what’s needs to be said about a question we all know the answer to incl him
Your decisions and choices of selections are totally wrong I don’t expect you gambling at this critical stage of the season
He’s correct but the issue is the way he rotates. He benches the starters and when things don’t work out, he brings them on. A good coach rotates his starters after the team are in a strong position. He’s also doing this to send a message to management. Failing to finish in the top 4 makes very little difference to the summer’s transfer market as we don’t have the finances to sign UCL proven players even if we’re in the UCL, as shown this season. Tomori could be sold to bring in extra revenue. He would be not great loss, Thiaw is a capable deputy and will be ready for the UCL after a year in the EL. Sometimes you have to take a step back in order to take 2 steps forwards. In any case, the way Inter are playing, we’re toast.
I dunno if it’s something to do with FFP rules or they are being cheapskate on mercato
The club still have debts so yes, the transfer budget is limited for at least another season. From 2024 onwards, the budget will probably increase to about €80 million. A player sale would be a big help. Tomori is being linked with a number of clubs, we should sell him.
It’s damnable some of u don’t see the positives in this game. If CDK had scored. If Origi had better shots at his feet. If Alexis goal was allowed…. The coach won’t go to the pitch to score himself! The players f**king messed up!!
And why would he say he has a B team?? A sensible coach would never say that.❤️🖤
In regards to comments above, I believe Pioli and co have done a good job with what they have.
Saying that, i dont understand why pioli wouldn’t start a strong 11 v Cremonese and rest some players v lazio.
We had a better chance of 3 points against the former. Also that gives our big guns a week to rest.
If we had started well v Cremonese we could have taken players off.
Top 4 is in serious danger now, which will set our project back 2 years.
Forza Milan