AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli has admitted that something needs to be changed in order for his side to get results and recover the season.
Milan suffered a difficult night in Saudi Arabia as they were beaten 3-0 by rivals Inter in the Supercoppa, with goals from Federico Dimarco, Edin Dzeko and Lautaro Martinez sealing a fourth Super Cup win for Simone Inzaghi.
It has thrust the Rossoneri into a crisis as they have now won just one of their opening five games in 2023 so far, which also includes a collapse against Roma and a Coppa Italia last 16 defeat against Torino, who played for over 50 minutes with 10 men and won in extra-time.
At the end of the Supercoppa final, Pioli spoke in his post-match press conference from the media room of the King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh, with his comments relayed by MilanNews.
What turn does the season take after tonight?
“One trophy missed but we still have a full season left to make it a positive season.”
How can one recover from such a situation? In terms of intensity, the team is no longer that of last year…
“If we want to get different results, a little something needs to be changed, a lot from a mental point of view and the approach to matches. Already against Lazio we can go back to playing our football.”
Has it been a difficult season so far?
“We have to think about returning to playing at our level rather than thinking about the season, the goal is to go back to being a team with confidence. The season is still long, we have to think about raising the quality level of the game.”
Are there more merits than Inter in this defeat or more demerits than Milan?
“We didn’t play a great game, our demerits are there.”
Is the long ball as a solution sought too insistently?
“The manoeuvre must be more precise and faster. We have to move better, sometimes it’s the opponent’s attitude that forces you to look for space in behind and bypass the midfield. We have to go back to being better at building from the back.”
