Stefano Pioli, the AC Milan coach, spoke to Sky Sport after the Udinese-Milan match. Here are his words, first about the racist insults from the Udinese fans against in the stands behind Mike Maignan:
"I am clearly disappointed. I can say that coaching someone like Maignan, so respectful, correct, and proud, is a pleasure. It's time to stop hearing certain things in the stadium: the ignorant ones should stay at home!"
On the match:
"In the first half, we should have scored a few more goals, then out of nothing, we conceded two goals and the game became more difficult. But if you play, if you believe, if you believe in your teammates and in your abilities, you can achieve important results."
On the Scudetto race, how will you get there in April? Pioli said:
"We're not thinking about April-May, but about Bologna. Inter and Juve are currently maintaining a pace that is too high. We can think about it only if we take it one game at a time and work well in every match."
Rafael Leao seems to not lack goals...
"Definitely yes. The tactical, technical, and mental growth of Rafa is complete. The numbers show that he has become more associative because his assists are higher than in the past. We have changed the way of playing a bit, we have fewer counterattacks, and there are fewer spaces for him; he is learning to move in narrower spaces. I believe he misses scoring goals, but absolutely for us, the team comes first."
You have 4 points less than in the Scudetto year...
"We lost points in direct clashes and in November, but now we are improving and growing. These victories should give us more confidence and conviction, trying to improve last year's score and do something more."
Did the team react to the elimination from the Champions League? Pioli replied:
"I'm glad you highlight this. They are Milan players; it's the attitude that counts."
Can you imagine the next 100 victories still with Milan?
"Let's hope so!"
