AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli has confirmed that the management are at work to strengthen the squad, while he also spoke about individual players who are having contrasting runs of form.
Milan are on a good run of form in the league have won three straight Serie A games against Sassuolo, Empoli and most recently Roma, but the pressure remains on the squad.
That is largely because of the Coppa Italia defeat to Atalanta which was a huge dent to the Rossoneri’s hopes of lifting a trophy in 2023-24, and also because Inter and Juventus remain so far ahead.
The gap to fifth place is nine points which means a top four spot looks likely barring an absolute collapse, yet the demands of the fan base mean that a season without silverware would not be celebrated.
Pioli spoke to the reporters who gathered at Milanello on the eve of the game against Udinese for his pre-match press conference, with his comments relayed by MilanNews.
Milan haven’t won in Udinese since 2020, is there a taboo to dispel?
“Only tomorrow’s match counts, not what we did in the past against them. We are different teams. They are doing well, but we are doing well too. Two teams that will try to outdo each other.”
Yacine Adli has had a rollercoaster last few months at Milan…
“His mind has not changed, he has always been available and attentive. He has never lacked this type of attitude, he has always been professional and convinced of his qualities.
“It happened that I told him that there could have been room by changing his position on the pitch. His latest performances are of a high level.
“If at the beginning of the summer there could have been doubts about the new position now there are none, so he is like a new signing for the team.”
How do Milan find consistency?
“We must not have fears, we must always have the will and the necessary clarity to perform at our best. Tomorrow is difficult, in the second round we want to do better than we did in the first round.
“There is no point in looking too far back, that What counts is tomorrow’s performance, we definitely had a good week.”
Your team have had some difficulties away from home…
“Milan must score as many points as possible, we want this from every single match. There are three-point matches and tomorrow we want to return home with full spoils.”
Are you still looking for a defender?
“Yes, yes, the choices we want to make in this market won’t change, the club is working. There are still two weeks.”
You’ve had difficulties against Cioffi…
“I don’t think so, the question would be completely correct if I had also met Cioffi with other teams, instead I always met him against Udinese.
“It’s the teams that meet, it’s not the coaches who play the match. I didn’t win against Mourinho, Milan won against Roma. Tomorrow’s match counts, not what happened in the past.”
Leao and shots on goal, is there a problem?
“In accuracy, yes, there were certainly many more attempts. We are the second best attack, Rafa is a very important player. Even when he isn’t able to be incisive he still creates space for us, takes away our opponents.
“We’ve changed a bit our way of attacking, we manage the ball more, we have more control of the game and this means that there are fewer spaces and counter-attacks.
“Rafa must try to find different spaces, with deeper defenses. He must make more accentuated movements. He is a decisive player for our attacking phase.”
Were too many shots on target conceded against Roma? Does it depend on midfielders being better suited to build-up than blocking?
“I believe that the team must work together in the defensive phase. I watched the game again together with Reijnders and Adli, they played a great game in the defensive phase, always taking the insertions and covering the areas we wanted to cover.
“Only on the penalty incident did they open too early, allowing the vertical pass to Lukaku. They worked well. The defensive phase must be done as a team, we must be willing to sacrifice ourselves and communicate, this is also useful for tomorrow’s match.”
Any update on the recovery times of Tomori, Thiaw and Kalulu?
“There are no precise times, we will take stock at the end of the month. In ten days we have an appointment with the healthcare staff to understand a little about the returns of Tomori, Thiaw, Kalulu and Pobega.
“At the end of the month we will have to make the UEFA list and it will be important to understand these situations.”
Is the table looked at with a desire to catch up to those above or to keep those below at a distance?
“We look at our ranking and we tend to improve it game by game. Our objective is clear: to do better than the previous round. Then in 3-4 months we will look at the table. Now we have to think about ourselves and stretch as much as possible this positive moment.”
What characteristics should the defender you are looking for have?
“A complete defender, to play for Milan you have to be a complete defender, capable of defending, of build-up, of participating in the attacking manoeuvre. A strong and solid player, many important characteristics.”
Is there an idea of a loan for those who have played less so far?
“We are evaluating all these situations. Tomorrow Pellegrino will complete his return by going to play in the Primavera, in the last days of the transfer window we will evaluate these situations.”
Milan have excellent numbers with Kjaer…
“I know these numbers very well because the boy often repeats them to me (laughs). They tell us that he is a leader, Simon is an emotional, technical leader.
“He knows how to speak well and a lot, he knows take a stand. As for the future, it is too early to talk about the future of any of us.”
Are you satisfied with the number of midfielders?
“I believe that if there is the possibility we could do something on the transfer market, we lost Pobega for a long time, we have Bennacer in the Africa Cup of Nations and we lost Krunic. There may be the possibility of an addition but it then depends on the opportunities.”
There has been talk about hunter and hare, guards and thieves… what about your Milan?
“I really liked playing hide and seek and then making everyone free.”
Is the squad in the best physical condition of the season so far?
“I think that’s a consequence of the mental aspect. You feel good mentally if you win matches, those are the expectations of the environment. If we win matches and there’s enthusiasm then we’re good physically, but that wasn’t our problem.”
Are you changing anything about the preparation ahead of February?
“We are planning more specific training sessions. We know how much our players need personalised work based on the role they occupy.
“Ball recovery is very important, but we can still work a lot on re-aggressions. It’s something to insist on, especially tomorrow. Stop immediately their restarts would be important.”
Is Adli the Redondo of Milan?
“Speed is not his best characteristic. What counts is the attitude you play with: if he was the one who recovered the most balls, what counts is the attitude. He is elegant and clean. But it is difficult to make comparisons.”
What do you ask of Leao?
“He is playing much more with the team, his key passes and his assists have increased. It is clear that they expect goals. Then he is always determined for his attacking phase, because he frees up spaces for others.”
What would change compared to the first half of the season?
“There are many things we could have done better.”
Ok Acmilan are doing we’ll but we need to add more pressing to opponents more but for now let Noah Okafor sub pulisic then Romero sub Loftus cheek and Chaka substitute leao since either jovic or Geroud can start as our striker the rejnder should play 90 minutes
I think a midfielder is most pressing and I’m glad Pioli sees that. If they really feel the need to get a CB I suppose.
Udinese always plays like they are fighting for a trophy against us. I hope we can beat them.
It’s actually a relief to hear somebody finally acknowledge our need for a midfielder!
Still cannot get my head around spending a chunk of what is a small budget on another defender
I like how he technically described the penalty conceded against roma, thats how a game is watched technically, not to say so and so conceded a penalty, therefore a lower rating, the game is viewed as a whole, ofcourse incidences decide games, but incidences are a result of a phase, there is more very important things that happen in a match besides goals, some players control phases, some take full control of incidences
“He knows how to speak well and a lot, he knows take a stand. As for the future, it is too early to talk about the future of any of us.”
Yes hopefully they’ll keep Kjaer and we can fulfil his dream to retire at Milan. There’s not many figures who has that caliber of experience and influence nowadays.