Stefano Pioli has revealed that he was in talks with other clubs when the call from Paolo Maldini came, and then he put everything else to one side in order to join AC Milan.
Milan rewarded Pioli’s work and the results he has obtained in these three seasons with a contract extension until 2025, and after putting pen to paper the head coach spoke during an interview with Milan TV.
Many questions were asked as part of the interview and one of the most interesting concerned the first phone call between Maldini and Pioli before becoming Milan’s head coach. Pioli revealed a curious background, revealing that when he was contacted by Maldini to coach the Rossoneri, he was in talks with two others.
“I felt a lot of emotion. I remember the first call very well. I was in talks with two other Italian teams in the same league. And I was struggling as to which one to choose between the two. But when he called me Paolo I immediately changed direction and came to Milan to meet him. I didn’t have any doubts. It took him little to convince me. Indeed, perhaps I had to convince him,” he said (via MilanLive).
In their live blog of the comments from Pioli, MilanNews reveal that it was Genoa and Sampdoria that he was in talks with about taking over.
