One year ago, Milan said goodbye to Simon Kjaer, one of the great protagonists of the 2022 Scudetto victory and of the general rebirth of the Rossoneri club.
The Dane was interviewed exclusively by TeleLombardia, which broadcast his words live. The full statements.
What will your future be?
"Good question, I'm evaluating many things: right now I’ve joined my former club to see how a football club works. I’ve been working with them for six months. I don’t know if I’d like to be a coach or a director. If there’s one thing football has taught me, it’s that it doesn’t close any kind of door: if I have to choose, I’m more of a director than a coach, but I also think that could change, it depends on the project. I’m lucky to have the patience to find a new passion and something that stimulates me. Slowly I have to find my new world, my new path, and at the moment I’m a full-time dad."
Would you like to return to Milan one day? Kjaer replied:
"Yes, why not? Milan has always been my club. When I went to Palermo at 19, I always told my agent that I wanted to go there: then I ended up there and I had four and a half fantastic years. Right now, no, I want to be a dad. I don’t want to force my way in somewhere: if I have to join a club, in any role, I have to learn a few things."
Could you ask Zlatan Ibrahimovic for advice?
"Yes, I could ask him and understand what works and what doesn’t. In my career though I have to make my own path and my own experience, above all I have to feel in my gut what I like and what I don’t."
Do you follow Serie A?
"My son keeps me updated on everything: he’s a Milan fan but also roots for Como now. The world of football has always been my world and it will remain my world."
From the outside, how did you experience Milan’s season? He commented:
"I experienced it like all the fans, it was a difficult season: this is football. You start over and Milan has to start over. A piece of advice? Difficult, because I don’t know what happened and what is happening, there are too many things to understand before speaking. I care about everyone who’s there: the players, Zlatan, Furlani, Moncada who were close to me and I worked with them... I know they’ll try to do the best possible for Milan. Then it didn’t go well and they found difficulties. But I am 100% convinced they’ll do their best to have a good season next year. This year didn’t go as all the fans would have wanted."
What do you think about the fans’ protest?
"The fans are always right, they do things based on emotions and I believe no one can go against the feelings of the fans this season: I absolutely understand them."
Whose fault is it?
"Everyone is at fault, because everyone is inside the Milan club. To assign percentages you also have to understand what happened, who made the decisions. I’m not a judge: the only thing I want is for Milan to be doing well."
Are you in contact with your former teammates? Is there disappointment?
"We talk, they’re my friends. They, like all the fans, went through a difficult time and that weighs. The fans have to understand that it weighs on the players too, they don’t go to training happy and serene, it’s a disappointment for them too."
Who would you like to see on Milan’s bench? Kjaer answered:
"I have no idea. That depends on the project, on what kind of football you want to play: should Milan play with 3? With 4? That’s too complex a question. You have to understand which players are leaving and who stays. I hope it’s a good coach for Milan. Conte? One can only give compliments, they’ve done a good job."
