AC Milan head coach, Paulo Fonseca, spoke to the media in a press conference today. Here are his words in view of the upcoming derby:
"Liverpool match? Yes, there is a lot of frustration on everyone's part, but there's awareness that we are united in getting out of this situation. The team understands the moment, and we're working together to improve. The solution now is to work hard, learn, and try to do better."
There’s the derby, the biggest opportunity or the most complicated match?
"We're preparing to face a very strong team, and it could be an important match for me. We have a lot to gain in this game because we need to think positively. If we win, it could be an important moment for us right now."
Your thoughts on your future?
"I don’t think about that. There’s the match against Inter, I’m focused on my job and being ready for tomorrow's game. The team and the match are what matter most."
What did you talk about with Zlatan Ibrahimovic? Did he reaffirm his confidence in you?
"I’ve always felt confidence in my work from the club. I understand the curiosity when Zlatan comes here, but I won’t talk about what we say. It’s always positive, it’s normal: Zlatan has been here as he’s been other times."
Your style of football seems less visible. What’s the problem?
"I could give many reasons to explain it, but I don’t want to make excuses. I want to address what’s happening by working, talking to my players to understand what we need to do. We have good moments, but we lack consistency. What I can say, and what I feel, is that the team is improving every day. We need consistency to get to where I want us to be. Do we need time? Yes. It’s true that Abraham arrived recently, we haven’t had the full squad for a long time, but I don’t want to make excuses. I want to focus on the work."
Is there anything you wouldn’t do again?
"No. I do what I believe in. I can’t do what I don’t believe in. I continue to believe in what I think a team should be and keep working on what I believe."
Is there something you’ve seen this week after Liverpool that makes you think the derby will be the turning point in the players' attitude?
"I don’t lie. We were just talking about this. Today, I arrive here: a derby, a difficult match… But I come here with confidence. It’s one thing if we feel the players are sad or uncomfortable. I would have liked to show you this week's training, but I can’t come here and not transmit confidence. The truth is, these three days of work have been fantastic. So, I go into the match with confidence; I can’t do otherwise. That’s why I’m confident in the future—I can’t say anything else because that’s the truth."
Will this confidence lead you to have an aggressive tactical approach?
"Obviously, for every match, we have different strategies. We know we're facing a very strong team, and we've prepared the match according to our opponents, who are very strong. One thing I can’t do: give the ball to the other team. We want to play, take the initiative, dominate when we can, and defend well because the team has done well collectively. We've prepared the match with tomorrow's opponent in mind."
Do you believe the club has given you a good or excellent squad?
"I received what we had planned to build; a very strong team. Are we already a very strong team? No."
Two Milans: the one from Parma and the one from the first half against Roma. Is a third version possible that can do well in both phases?
"Why do you think that against Lazio, in the first half, we didn’t concede anything? Because we had the ball, and when we have the ball, we don’t defend. That’s the truth, that’s the difference. We were close and compact, but we had the ball."
Right now, Milan seems to lack heart, mind, and organisation... How do you win the derby?
"By scoring more goals than Inter, that’s how you win a game."
Again on your idea of dominant football...
"I believe in a way of winning. I think it’s common to many great teams. I know that in Italy, the result is valued more than the style of play. But they brought me here because they wanted to change. I believe that when a team has the ball, I’ll continue to believe in this, and with the quality we have, we need to have more of the ball and create more. I continue to believe in this. I don’t think football is better when we give the ball to the opponents; I’ll keep believing in this."
After Liverpool, Christian Pulisic said that the team couldn’t keep the ball in the final third. Isn't that worrying after three months?
"I agree. I want to have the ball to create conditions to attack at the right moment. Creating against Liverpool doesn’t seem easy for any team. I watched all their games, and it’s not easy to create against them. But we had 4-5 situations where we could’ve done better by making better decisions at the last moment. The issue isn't how often we attacked, but when we didn’t make the right final choice. It’s about final decisions. Salah was the player who touched the ball the least, but the first two times he did, he took two shots and hit the crossbar twice. It’s a matter of choices and decisions."
There's talk you and Zlatan Ibrahimovic don’t get along and that regardless of tomorrow, you won’t be Milan’s coach anymore. It seems impossible that these rumours haven’t reached the dressing room…
"Not to me. That’s the truth. I’m 51 years old, and if I listened to what you talk about, I wouldn’t be able to work. So, I don’t care. It’s not important to me what people say. Not everything that’s said is true. For me, it’s not important; otherwise, how could I work peacefully? If you post something on Instagram and I go to criticise you, I’m sure you wouldn’t like it. So, if I paid attention to all these things, how could I work calmly? What’s important to me is what I feel here, what the people I work with make me feel."
Can Inter’s match against City serve as inspiration for Milan’s approach to tomorrow’s game in terms of attitude? Fonseca answered:
"Is this a question to make me praise Inter? But I don’t want to."
Alvaro Morata talked about a mental boost after Torino. In the Champions League, the same issues reappeared. How do you heal mentally in three days?
"That’s what I’ve done this week. I showed the players what we did well. Salah hit the crossbar in the 23rd minute, but before that, defensively, we did well, and I showed that to the players to make them believe we can do better. They have the ability and must have confidence. Liverpool is a great example of a team. They conceded after three minutes but always played the same way, with the same confidence. The situation is different; they’ve had this team for many years, and it’s a process that started with Klopp. I want our players to have the same confidence: just because we concede a goal or hit the crossbar doesn’t mean we should change our style. We shouldn’t stop taking risks or stop playing. Nothing should change. Liverpool is a great example of a team that plays very well."
Who are the leaders of this team who can guide the group?
"I don’t want to individualise. When you don’t win, the easiest thing is to find excuses. When you don’t win, there are no leaders or this or that player. I think we have players who are leaders and do well in that role. The situation is what it is, but there’s no lack of leadership in the group."
You talk a lot about possession, but without the ball? Should you be aggressive against Inter?
"I don’t think we can separate these moments. Even against Inter, when we don’t have the ball, we must win it back quickly. We're not playing against a weak team, there will be moments when we’re forced to sit deep and defend. Against Liverpool, in the first 20 minutes, we were compact and united. Even Rafa was there defending. Inter is a great team, there will be times when we’ll need to sit deep. If we don’t want these moments, then we must not lose the ball easily."
Do you feel like a lion or a kitten, Fonseca?
"Always a lion (laughs)."
The first five games suggest that Fikayo Tomori and Strahinja Pavlovic are the best defensive pair since they’ve played the most.
"I managed the three games. It’s true that against Venezia, we didn’t concede, but it was a different game. Against Liverpool, it was different; we conceded from set pieces. I have confidence in all my central defenders. I have the option to choose based on the moment and the opponent, and that’s what I’ll do."
Did you expect Christian Pulisic to be this good?
"Yes, I did. He can play in different positions, he's intelligent. I expected it."
Once, I read that you're passionate about horses. When you talk about confidence because you see the team training well, sometimes horses perform well in the morning but less so on the track. Could Milan be like that, performing well in training but mentally suffering in matches?
"I see them like horses. I talk to the players and say we must always be the same, regardless of the result. We need to have our identity. It’s a new process, and with any change, time is needed. But with confidence, work, and time, we’ll dominate all moments of the game. I think we’re growing to become like that."
