AC Milan's head coach, Stefano Pioli, in view of tomorrow's fixture away from home against Empoli, has sat down with the media in a press conference. Here are his words:
"At Empoli, a decisive week begins for the Italian Cup and the championship: 'It's easy to agree on this assessment. Starting the week well would be important for many reasons. We must focus solely on tomorrow's challenge."
He added:
"We want to gather many points in the championship, but there are many things to do on the field. Tomorrow, it's important to finalize more than our opponents, defend better, and try to win the game. If we manage to string together convincing performances, it means the difficult period is behind us.'
Is the attack at full strength, or could there be some arrivals from the transfer market?
"I believe we'll have to wait another week; Okafor will be available against Roma (January 14). Once available, we have good resources with different characteristics, we are quite complete."
On the transfer market subject, Pioli offered these words:
"The executives are working on it. They know that if there's an opportunity to improve and do something more, I believe they'll be ready."
Now, how do you manage energies considering the numerous close engagements? Pioli replied:
"The choices made with Cagliari were made to field a balanced team, one that could win and provide respite to those who have played more. I don't believe that rotation is impossible, but I have to say that I'm not thinking about Atalanta or Roma; we're solely focused on tomorrow. Then we'll have two days to recover, allowing me to make the best choices for the lineup against Atalanta. It might be the same as Empoli or it might be different, depending on how we come out of Empoli physically and mentally. The performance we displayed in the Coppa Italia means an opportunity for many young players and there might be space for them as well."
Regarding Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Pioli said:
"He's coming with us today. Ibra has already transferred a lot when he was my player. Ibra can transfer a lot; he's the king of how he managed to challenge all the challenges he had throughout his entire career, in terms of knowledge, on the field, off the field. He can transfer his experience in everything."
Milan hasn't won away in Serie A for three months, since Genoa-Milan:
"We made mistakes that we paid dearly for when victory or a positive result was within our reach. We made mistakes that we are trying to eliminate."
Pioli, what is the keyword for tomorrow's match?
"One: victory. Just that. If you win, it means you've put together all the other things. You win on merit because you've done more than your opponents. Only winning matters; that's what we know. We want to keep doing well; that's the only goal."
On Rade Krunic and his behavior:
"The reality is that at this moment it's better, for him and for us, that he's looking for another team. But it's absolutely not true that Krunic has pushed himself out. It's me who made choices because I saw that his performance was no longer the same as before."
What were the most worrying shadows of this first half of the season? Pioli answered:
"Not winning away for a long time. Then, we paid a lot for the recovery after the second break where in 4 matches we only got 2 points despite having the chance to win. Those 4 matches penalized our position in the table. We must firmly keep in mind that we have to have a significantly better second half of the season."
Why is Luka Jovic not starting for you?
"I'm lucky to have two center-forwards of such caliber; the choices are never final as one of the two will be ready to come on, either to play alongside the partner or to replace them. I hope both continue to be important references and contribute to the team's good performance."
On Theo Hernandez playing centrally and an update on Fikayo Tomori, Malick Thiaw, and Pierre Kalulu:
"I believe Theo is an extremely strong player, a very intelligent guy, and with this move, he's trying to elongate his career. He has physical, technical, and tactical abilities above average, allowing him to play where he believes he can excel the most. At the moment, he feels comfortable in this position, performing very well and making himself available during a tough period. He can play anywhere, he's the classic example that when a player is motivated and positive, possessing the skills, they can play in any position to help the team.'
An assessment of Samuel Chukwueze's first four months? Pioli replied:
"I think he's the new arrival who's struggling a bit more to adapt to our dynamics compared to others who integrated faster. He hasn't had consistent playing time, experiencing two injuries with the national team. Of course, I expect more from him because I'm confident in his abilities.'"
On the new players coming into the first team from the Primavera squad:
"They haven't debuted just out of necessity, but because they have the qualities to be with us. The journey ahead will still be long; it will take time and patience from everyone. It's the result of years of high-level work in the Youth Sector; now, we are reaping the rewards. They have very, very positive attitudes."
On Theo Hernandez playing as centre-back, does this ability of his change the mercato vision for the club? Pioli answered:
"It might, but it also takes time. Things in football can change quickly. Before taking fixed positions and making future hypotheses, we still need some time."
On the difficulties in closing out matches:
"In certain matches the most difficult thing for us is to control and try to sink the shot to finish the matches. We have always been very good at catching mistakes, I expect improvements in this situation".
Special question from an inmate in Beccaria juvenile prison: 'How do you teach kids to get back up after a fall?
"That visit to Beccaria was a beautiful experience for me too. Falling is normal in sports as in life, to get back up, you must keep believing in your qualities and abilities and put in maximum effort. Listen to the people who care about you, they might not be many but can help you rise again.'
Will we manage to be as light as we were against Cagliari tomorrow?
"We have to try to be and be just as effective. The game the other night is an example of how games change: we were good at turning it in our favor. Then confidence and enthusiasm rose. We have to be consistent in the game."
On Ruben Loftus-Cheek's position, Pioli:
"It has always been hybrid. With the ball, he's on the trequartista, but he's always been between the lines. I would like him to be more present inside the opponent's area. Without the ball, we press the opponents, so he becomes a trequartista if the opponents have a low line or a mezz'ala if they have two midfielders. He's a player for finishing, for making runs, for dribbling; he's a quality player who should be in the opponent's half."
