This year, AC Milan begin again with a Portuguese manager and a strong desire to play dominant football. It is a familiar story at Milanello because, two years ago at this time, another Portuguese coach, Paulo Fonseca, took charge with the club's shared ambition of making Milan play "dominant football". Interviewed by SportWeek, which will be available tomorrow morning, the former Rossoneri tactician, who was dismissed at the end of December after only a few months in charge, reflected on his experience at the club.
Paulo Fonseca on his brief spell at Milan:
"Yes, I'm disappointed, because two years ago I was brought in for one reason: to change the team's style of play. The club told me, 'We want Milan to become dominant, to control possession and play in the opposition's half.' I replied, 'Perfect, that's exactly my idea of football.'
"But the truth is that change takes time, and playing this kind of football in Italy is not easy. To achieve it, you first have to change the players' mentality. This may sound arrogant, but I was already on that path, and since I left, I have never seen Milan produce the same quality of football that the team showed when I was on the bench."
Fonseca also said:
"I saw that when Amorim arrived at Milanello, Cardinale himself was there to welcome him. When I arrived, on the other hand, there was nobody there."
