AC Milan's technical area director, Paolo Maldini, shared his thoughts with SportMediaset ahead of the Rossoneri's match against Tottenham in the Champions League. Speaking on the team's return to the knockout stage of the competition, Maldini expressed his satisfaction with the connection between the team and the fans, calling it a "great symbiosis that has yielded excellent results in recent years".
When asked about forward Rafael Leao, Maldini said:
"The will is always the same. However, today we must only focus on the game."
On the three-man defence:
"Europe is difficult, the gap with the others, especially from an economic point of view, is enormous. I would have liked to arrive at this match with fewer injuries. The change of formation was dictated by the current situation. This Milan is slightly sick compared to the one that won the scudetto last year."
On Milan's moment, Maldini declared:
"It is normal to have ups and downs in a journey. We missed the chance to win two of the four competitions available. Beyond the formation, we must be aggressive, we must not lose our identity."
On Gerry Cardinale:
"I saw him at lunch today, everything went well. It is unthinkable to reduce the gap with the others in a few years. We believe in the project, but it takes time. We must find balance, the expectations are high, and we know we have great responsibility."
