AC Milan's head coach, Stefano Pioli, has spoken to the media today in a press conference in view of the Serie A fixture against Lazio tomorrow. Here are his words:
"Napoli's Scudetto? They're an extremely strong team who deserve to be congratulated. They deserved to win the championship. Congratulations to all of them. Watching their celebrations, I saw ours from last year and hope to repeat it soon."
Pioli, how's the current moment of the team?
"Since the break, the team has dominated the games more than before, but we have only gotten two victories. We needed to win more, but if we didn't, it means something was missing, especially in the opponent's area. Tomorrow we're playing against a strong team, we need to be more decisive."
Is tomorrow the last chance for the Champions League?
"The team knows the opportunities we've missed and knows we can't miss any more. Tomorrow is an important step."
Do you have any regrets?
"I know what I'm doing and why I'm doing it. There's no Milan 1 or Milan 2. It wasn't a lack of performance, but rather a lack of a winning result."
What's needed to be more decisive?
"I know my players well and they believe. We've worked on certain situations. Out of 16 total wins, we were ahead 12 times. We need to be more attentive, precise, and determined in the offensive phase. I'm confident, and we need to continue to play with courage."
Have you received any messages from the ownership?
"The ownership and executives are always close to us. We all know that this is a decisive month, and we're just focused on doing our best", stated Pioli.
Why have all the new arrivals, except for Thiaw, found little space?
"They have the qualities to be important players. We can do more."
How is Charles De Ketelaere?
"The first one who must not give up is there and that's what he's doing. Every player must take advantage of the opportunities given to them."
Why didn't Ante Rebic come on against Cremonese?
"I chose players with different characteristics. I make formations to win matches and so my choices are based on what is needed on the field."
What didn't work this year?
"It's not a programming issue. Each season has its own story. We must be clear and say that we started out to win the championship. Last year, we made a leap when we came out of the Champions League. This year we are doing very well in the Champions League. After January, we lacked the continuity to fight for the Serie A title. Only City among the European leaders can still win the Champions League and the championship, we are not at that level."
Did the substitutions on Sunday not help? Pioli answered:
"I think positively. With Cremonese, the substitutions made the game worse because we took different positions. I liked the first half, in the second half we got nervous."
What do you think of Antetokounmpo's words?
"I also liked how he said certain things. In the end, only one person wins, so talking about failure too often is heavy. It always depends on a team's plans, whether they aimed to win or not. Disappointments and defeats serve to become stronger in the future."
Has Milan's game regressed?
"No, I don't think so. Results change opinions. One of my goals was to dominate games more and we're succeeding in that. In the last two games, we conceded goals on the counter-attack, and we need to do better in that regard. For what we do during the game, we need to score more."
There's a lot of talk about your choices for rotation...
"I make my evaluations and I was convinced they were the right choices."
On playing the Champions League:
"I meet many fans and everyone is happy with our path in the Champions League. You don't play Champions League semi-finals every year. Everything will be at stake in those matches. In the league, we have to do better and finish in the top four."
How do you manage the team?
"We have to focus only on the first game, then there will be time to prepare for the next one. Tomorrow's match against Lazio is very important, there is maximum concentration. They are second in the standings and have gained momentum after being knocked out of Europe."
How do you approach the game against Lazio?
"They are very strong in the middle, they have a great midfield. It's a complete team, so we have to be compact and then try to exploit our qualities."
Could the result against Lazio affect the team's performance in the Champions League?
"No, because the Champions League is a separate matter. Now we focus on Lazio, then we'll think about the derby."
