Ahead of the game opposing AC Milan to Hellas Verona this Sunday in Serie A, the Rossoneri's head coach Stefano Pioli has spoken about the match in the press conference earlier today. Here are his statements:
On the difference between 2020 and 2021 for Milan:
"It is inevitable that if we compare the two years, the results have been inferior, but thinking of being able to obtain the same results was difficult to predict and there are injuries, it is a particular season. It is time to bite the bullet and try to win more games from now to the end, the next two and a half months will decide the fate of the league and the Europa League".
On Juric:
"Juric is doing a great job, even [with] changing so many players he has kept an attacking and technical team, a team to face with great attention. He stopped Juve, beat Atalanta and Napoli. We will have to be careful and put a lot of movement, they are good in duels., we will have to move well".
On the difference in performance between Roma and Udinese:
"It is important to analyze two things. To play certain games you need to be able to attack the spaces, expect the same performance against Udinese, an opponent who is better at closing in, it is difficult to find rhythm and intensity. It is wrong to talk about attitude., the team gave everything even against Udinese, but in terms of quality we weren't the ones in Roma. We are proud to be the youngest team in the league. To grow you also have to go through certain difficulties".
On whether looking behind now would be better:
"We have always focused on our performances and our results, it is our path that interests us. If we only think of doing the last part of the league by looking at the results of the others it would be limiting. Our race is difficult but we can have our say, we have the desire to win".
On his expectations from Leao:
"Leao has to give his best in every single match, that's what he's doing. With Udinese he didn't find the winning game, the Udinese defenders have always got the better of us. Leao knows he still has to work on these situations, to find a continuity of performance that is needed by him and the team".
On whether he'd bet on Milan in the Champions League:
"We bet on ourselves, we will give our best until the end. I keep repeating that there are seven very strong teams, we want to go to the Champions League. If we don't succeed we will be disappointed, what matters is to move forward with confidence and positivity, then we'll see what we can do".
On how Romagnoli reacted after the decision of benching him against Roma:
"He accepted my choice, not with satisfaction, but he accepted the choice with professionalism and then he was ready for Udinese".
On whether there is a need for something more against Verona than against Udinese:
"We were slower than usual with the ball. We have to move a lot, Verona is looking for more duels and we have to give few points of reference, if we play a more technical match we will have our chances".
On how Bennacer is doing right now:
"He has had two injuries, we try to put him back on the pitch in the best possible condition, the boy is afraid, he is working hard to get back to his best. All those who are missing are important, we must believe in our qualities, we have already shown that we play an excellent football in difficult situations".
On how would he explain all these injuries:
"We are working on it, we are very attentive to workloads, unfortunately the many commitments have put us in difficulty. It is the first time that we have these numbers, we are working to reduce them".
On what to tell the players now:
"I will tell my players in the meeting that I would like to be 30 years younger and that I would like to take the field with them. I don't know if they would be happy, but this must be the spirit. The final result also passes through these situations, overcoming them together will give us more satisfaction".
On whether the many commitments affect:
"Playing every three days is part of the path. In Roma we did very well, we didn't succeed with Udinese but we will have the opportunity to make up for it tomorrow".
On Verona putting him in difficulty in previous games:
"With Verona we drew last year and in this season. It is an opponent who creates difficulties for us but we will have to be prepared".
On who's better between Krunic and Diaz for tomorrow:
"They have different characteristics, Krunic is fine, he rested on Wednesday, he is more likely to play".
On the few goals from midfielders in action:
"It is part of the game system, with two midfielders there are few insertions. It is part of our game construction. We lack some conclusions, some goals from outside the area, we have to shorten the team better".
On Tonali's form:
"Sandro is fine, he's growing up. He just had a fatigue, he's fine both mentally and physically".
On whether there would be more spaces than against Udinese:
"On paper, Verona attacks more, there may be some space".
On missing goals:
"It takes quality to score, we also need individual play, and 1vs1s can resolve matches, especially when opponents close down. We have the qualities to succeed, we hope to do it tomorrow".