Press conference - Conceicao: "We fight every day to create a revolution"

Sergio Conceicao, Milan's head coach, spoke to the media in a press conference ahead of the match versus Como.

Here's what he had to say:

Question: It's the second week without midweek commitments. How useful is it for you?

"Very, very important. This is the second week in which we don’t have midweek matches. It has been crucial for us to work on game situations and physical aspects where we needed improvement. The players have responded fantastically in terms of spirit. I like seeing the enthusiasm they have; even in small-sided games, they are cheerful and happy. We are working on things we have never had the chance to work on together before."

Is the Champions League still a goal in your minds?

"We fight every day to create a revolution, and that is important as a team. If we have that mindset, we will improve in terms of results. We focus on the present; we have an important and difficult match against Como. I don’t need to think too far ahead. We have to work hard every day, and there is joy in doing so, even when we push ourselves. The players are happy. The group is in a good place. They have given me a fantastic response over these two weeks. We need to keep going down this path, and then we’ll see where we stand."

After comeback victories, defeats have always followed... Have you worked on motivation?

"We try to work on all aspects: physical, tactical, and emotional. I’m very satisfied with this week, just as I was with the last one. We started very well against Lecce, and in the second half, we created a lot and scored three goals—could have scored even more. Other teams have quality, good coaches… In Italy, no match is easy. Maybe once upon a time, but now everything seems more balanced, different, and more difficult."

There's a lot of talk about Milan in June and the coach of the future…

"I can’t control what others say or think. I can control what we do in training; the rest is what it is. I've been in football for many years; I’m used to everything. Sometimes, it feels like there’s a bit of disrespect toward those who are still here, but I’m used to it—it’s football."

Is it extra motivation to beat Como tomorrow, given that Fabregas has been linked to Milan as a potential coach? Do you feel a personal need for revenge?

"If my motivation came from that, then I’d be sick and should go to the hospital. The motivation comes from the desire to win a difficult match against a team with quality, interesting players, and a good technical staff. We need to study their strengths and weaknesses and do our job, focusing on ourselves. If we execute what we’ve worked on, we’ll be closer to winning. It’s Milan versus Como, not Conceição versus the opposing coach."

Do you regret not being here from the start of the season?

"No, I don’t. When I arrived, I knew the schedule wasn’t easy, and the squad had playing principles instilled by other coaches."

Leão has made an impact in each of his last six Serie A appearances, either scoring, winning penalties, or assisting. When coming off the bench, he produces a goal or assist every 52 minutes, but as a starter, that number increases. Will Leão start tomorrow or not?

"You’re trying to be clever about this… (laughs). I don’t want to individualize. Rafa is one of the best players in Italian football and could be one of the best in the world. I’ve spoken with him—we are very direct with each other. We have a fantastic relationship, he is very willing, and he is ready to help the team, whether from the start, in the 40th minute, or in the 90th."

Thoughts on the starting midfield? And Gimenez hasn’t scored in a month—how can you help him perform at his best? What have you worked on this week? Conceicao replied:

"In these weeks, we’ve had time to work on different aspects, specifically on attack, defense, and midfield. It’s a collective effort to react when losing possession. Everything works as a team; attacking starts with the goalkeeper, just as defending involves the whole team. We need to work across all areas to find balance. We are working to reach that balance, to be dangerous in attack while ensuring opponents don’t get forward easily."

Marchegiani says he has the impression that Milan doesn’t know how to defend… Is it clear why the team keeps conceding similar goals?

"When the opponent scores, there’s always an error, whether collective or individual. But this happens everywhere. Before coming here, I had a video meeting with the defensive line to analyze what we didn’t do well. The transition from attack to defense is there, but we need to know how to stop the counterattack. We can do it, and we must do it—we have fast players. We are working on it every day, and I’m happy to finally work on these things on the pitch instead of just through video analysis. You don’t become perfect overnight, but we are improving every day."

Has Arrigo Sacchi responded to you? Conceicao answered:

"That’s a question for Ramazzotti (from Gazzetta). I have immense respect for him. These messaging things are for young people—he doesn’t even look at them. I send him a big hug."

How has Ruben Loftus-Cheek been doing?

"I never really had him due to injuries, but now he’s at 100%. He’s not ready for 90 minutes yet, but I like him a lot. He’s a very strong midfielder, gets into the opponent’s box well, and physically, he’s a beast. I hope to have him available for this final stretch of the season. Last year, he scored 10 goals—he’s a top-quality box-to-box player."

A three-man defense to push Theo further forward?

"I can’t restrict his attacking ability—I need to let him go forward while also ensuring balance, so he can do what he did against Lecce and be decisive in the final 30 meters because he has that quality."