AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli presented the match of Milan - Porto in the Champions League, valid for matchday 4 in the group stage, and said the following:
"Porto are a strong team, a team that holds itself well on the pitch in the defensive phase and tries to be aggressive. We will have to be very lucid, technically precise and be proactive and dangerous. Porto were aggressive... They didn't allow us to manage that game better. They deserved to win because they played better than us, but we could have done better with the unmarking, which we will have to do tomorrow.."
On the team's performance:
"With the team, we have seen the positive things from a technical, tactical and mental point of view. We are focused on our work and on the desire to be together. We feel we do not deserve the 0 in the Champions League group table and we have the chance to win."
On the previous league game versus Roma:
"Milan won in Rome because they played better than their opponents, just as we lost against Porto because they did better than Milan", declared Pioli
Will Giroud start tomorrow?
"We still have to do some work, I'll decide after training this afternoon."
Pioli shares his thoughts on the comparison between himself and Guardiola:
"Guardiola for me is the best coach in the world, especially for how he improves the players he has within his club. I have tried to take an example from everyone to improve myself and grow and that is what I will continue to do."
This is an important week, with games against Porto and Inter...
"We only have to think about tomorrow's match, we want to close the streak of negative results. We have to focus only on tomorrow. As a team, we always learn from mistakes, we didn't do well in the first leg. We only think about Porto, then we will think about Sunday's derby."
