AC Milan head coach, Paulo Fonseca, spoke to the media in a press conference ahead of tomorrow night's match against Fiorentina.
Here are his statements:
Since the derby, aside from the Loftus-Morata substitution in Leverkusen, the same lineup has always been used...
"Continuity is important at this moment, especially when we have more days to let the players recover. If the team is in good shape, it's important to maintain as many players as possible. But it's not that I don't trust the others: Loftus and Chukwueze, for example, came on and did well and are working well. For me, it's important right now to have this foundation that supports the team's growth."
How is the team after the Champions League match?
"We didn't win against Leverkusen, the group was disappointed and upset, but what I’ve felt this week are good vibes. The team has worked very well again and we want to win. Playing in Florence is always difficult, they have a great team: for Milan, it's traditionally tough to win in Florence, but we are ready to have a great match."
How are Alvaro Morata and Strahinja Pavlovic?
"Morata is fine, he's ready to play. He will play tomorrow. As for Pavlovic, I think it's important to have stability in defence, and I think both Gabbia and Tomori have had great games. Now Pavlovic has to keep working, and he will get opportunities. Right now, the center-back pair is doing well, and it's important to keep it that way."
Gabbia called up for the national team...
"I'm Milan’s coach, I don't want to influence Spalletti, but I think it was the right call. He is in great form, and I think the call-up is deserved. I'm very pleased, he’s a great professional: if there is a player here who deserves it, it's Gabbia."
Napoli is pulling away...
"We still have a lot to play for, and there are many teams that want the same thing we want. I don’t want to talk about other teams, but Napoli has the advantage of not having any cup competitions. They have a strong coach, a strong team, and more time to work: I don't want to put pressure on them, but they are definitely a strong candidate for the title."
Is there a problem with away games? Fonseca answered:
"For us, it’s always the same; we always have the ambition to win both at home and away. Tomorrow it will be important to win, but not because it’s an away game, but because we need to keep up what we've done in the league: it's an opportunity to show that we have the same ambition both at home and away."
Milan is either disappointing or putting in great performances. Which is the real Milan?
"It's not easy to answer. What I do know is that we played against Leverkusen, one of the strongest teams in Europe at the moment. I think we’re in a period of growth. It's not because we won against Inter and Lecce that I said the team was growing: now I feel the team is improving, it's growing, but there’s still a lot to improve. The real Milan is not close for me yet. We have to do more. It's true that what I want is a team closer to what we did in the second half against Leverkusen. We have to understand that all games are different. If tomorrow we want to play like we did in the second half of the Champions League, we will have to be different. Fiorentina will mark man-to-man tomorrow, but for me, it’s still important to feel that the team is growing."
Youssouf Fofana is improving. Is he already indispensable?
"He is very important for us, improving every day. I think there was an adaptation period; Ligue 1 is different from Serie A, and he has a different role here. This adaptation took time. For me, this player in this structure is the most important player. As Fofana improves, so does the team. These players who play in these positions are the engine of the team, and if they work well, the team is more likely to play well."
Would you still say yes to Pierre Kalulu's sale?
"I don't talk about players who are no longer here. Kalulu is no longer here. I must not forget that it was also the player's choice. It doesn't make sense to compare who’s here with those in other teams now. It's important to focus on who’s here."
How is Davide Calabria doing?
"Calabria is having some issues. He started with a calf injury... He has had these problems, and he cannot play."
Is it possible to do a "Fofana operation" with Musah?
"We’re working with him to play that role. He’s training in that position. With Bennacer's injury, we don't have other players for that position, Musah is the only one besides Fofana. Fofana is a passing midfielder, Musah is a ball-carrying midfielder. We are working on having him play that position."
You're always playing with the same 11-12 players. Isn't it time to start giving others like Samuel Chukwueze and Noah Okafor more minutes?
"We'll see based on the moment of the team and the players. Right now, I thought it was important to maintain this continuity. We'll see; I have confidence in all the players. We have many games, and we will need everyone. Right now, I think it’s important for the team to play with the same players."
Does this team have the character and personality to impose their game?
"I don't think it was a character issue against Leverkusen. In the first half, Leverkusen had a deserved superiority. We made mistakes in our plays and decisions. The team showed character throughout the game, and I don't think it was an attitude issue. It was a tough match because Leverkusen is a strong team with an identity that is easy to understand but difficult to counter. But I think the team showed a lot of character."
How much is Mike Maignan helping you on the field and in the locker room?
"Since my first day here, Mike has been an important player, one of the leaders of the group. He works well, always very balanced. He’s one of the leaders in the locker room."
What do you fear about Fiorentina? Fonseca said:
"I think it will be a tough match. They have quality and good players, and they mark man-to-man. This shift in facing different teams isn’t easy. We’re coming from a match where positional play was important; now we have a game where other things are important. If we don’t do things right, we’ll have more difficulties with their man-to-man marking. It will be a tough match."
What’s not working 100% in the team yet?
"I feel like I keep saying the same things... What I think is that since I arrived here, it’s always been easy for me to understand that this team, I’m not saying it’s better, but now it’s different. It’s not a criticism of the past, just an observation. This team played individual matches, and changing that is difficult. We are working every day to change that because it's what I believe in: I’m not saying it’s better. But it’s not easy. Then we have to understand that change doesn’t happen quickly. We need time to train, to understand which moments and phases are important, and obviously, this is difficult to change. But we are changing. And what satisfied me the most is that in the second half of the Leverkusen game, we had very good positional play."
Do you like Santiago Gimenez?
"I like him. But I like Abraham and Morata more (laughs)."
Looking at Milan's growth, what did the Leverkusen match teach you?
"Maybe for you, it’s not important, but for me as a coach, it’s important to understand what happens during the game", said Fonseca, "and that’s difficult because here, the characteristics of the matches aren’t the same. Telling my players that positional play was important and we need to improve, but now there’s a game where positional play isn’t important: when there’s a team that marks man-to-man, other things are important, which are not directly related to positional play. And this only happens here in Italy: in other leagues, they don’t play man-to-man. Rice from Arsenal, when he played against Atalanta, said the same. Imagine Leverkusen: a whole season playing positional play, then in the last week of the season, you have to change everything. It’s not easy, there are automatic things that aren’t easy to change. You can’t change in 3-4 days. And here in Italy, we have to change in two days. We play Fiorentina, then Udinese, which leaves room for positional play, and so on. And for the coach, that’s not easy: 95% of the teams play the same way."
Can Noah Okafor be an alternative to Alvaro Morata? Is the two-striker system a long-term project?
"I don't know if it's long-term, but for the next match, yes. Morata is now a false 9, it's difficult for Okafor: he doesn't have these characteristics."
Tomorrow you’ll face Yacine Adli again. What kind of player is he?
"I don't have to talk about players from other teams. What can I say? When he was here, he was a player I liked with certain characteristics, but I understand that it was hard for him to play here. He understood that and now he’s with another team. I’m glad he’s doing well, but tomorrow I hope he doesn’t do well (laughs)."
There are two different opinions about the Leverkusen performance: some criticize Milan, while others are satisfied...
"That’s not important to me, just as criticisms are not important to me. I didn’t pay attention to it, it doesn’t matter to me."
Will there be any players from Milan Futuro team in the senior squad?
"At this moment, no."
