In view of tomorrow's Coppa Italia round of 16 match against Sassuolo, head coach Paulo Fonseca, spoke to the AC Milan official channel.
First of all, you gave Edoardo Bove his debut. What were your feelings yesterday?
"I was watching the game, and it was a difficult moment. He worked with me at Roma, and I feel sorry for what happened to him. He’s doing better now. At this moment, football is not important, but his health is. Those were tough moments. I send him a hug on behalf of all of us—the team and the club. Here at Milanello today, we talked a lot about what happened. I wish him a speedy recovery."
Tomorrow is the Coppa Italia. Is it one of your objectives? Fonseca answered:
"Milan hasn’t won this trophy in a long time. We must be ambitious. However, we’re not looking too far ahead; we’re only focusing on tomorrow. If we want to reach the final, which should be our goal, we have to win tomorrow."
Even though Sassuolo plays in Serie B, they’re not a team to underestimate...
"For me, they’re not a Serie B team; they have many Serie A-caliber players. It’s not just Berardi. They defeated Lecce 2-0 in the previous round. They are a strong team, and we’ve studied them. I told the players to expect a tough game against a Serie A-level team."
Will you consider Friday’s match in Bergamo when making your choices? Fonseca replied:
"If we don’t manage the team and players well, we could face physical problems, and we don’t want that. I trust all my players. There will be some changes, but always with the goal of winning the match."
Can you tell us anything about individual players?
"Maignan won’t be available due to a dental procedure. Theo will also be out due to a foot contusion. The others are all ready to play. I’ll field a team to win."
Against Empoli, we saw a balanced team...
"I’m satisfied. We played a great match, very balanced. We created many goal-scoring opportunities, regained possession high up the pitch—we’re on the right track. We must work every day to become stronger and stronger. It’s up to us to lead the fans, and the team did that in the last match. With the fans by our side, we are stronger."
Malick Thiaw and Emerson Royal have improved a lot...
"I agree. Thiaw is in excellent form, and Emerson is improving. He arrived late, and Serie A is different from the Premier League. He had little time to settle in, but I think the recent matches have shown that he’s doing better and improving. The fans have noticed that too. The players need the support of the fans—it’s important for them."
