Amorim discusses Cardinale’s ‘Top Gun’ remark, Scudetto aim, Ramos’ struggles and injuries
AC Milan head coach Ruben Amorim has responded to Gerry Cardinale’s words about him being his ‘Top Gun’ and the Scudetto being an aim.
For Milan, there is once again the need to bounce back after a negative result. On Wednesday night at San Siro they led at half-time against Bologna, before conceding three times in the second half to eventually lose 4-2.
Not only did that knock the Rossoneri out of the top four but it put them seven points behind Inter and Lazio who are the league-leaders at the moment. So, it means that a victory is needed in the derby to keep pace at the top, but there is at least some good injury news: Diego Moreira, Mario Gila and Adrien Rabiot are all back.
Amorim spoke to the reporters who gathered at Milanello for his pre-match press conference on the eve of the game. MilanNews relayed his words.
Even in Top Gun there are ups and downs…
“I truly appreciate Cardinale’s support. We already knew – and everyone here has the clarity to understand – that we can’t build a solid foundation if we have to deal with these kinds of issues in the middle of the season.
“It will take time, it’s inevitable, but at the same time, we want to win every single game: when we fail to do so, we’ll continue to feel it, making it our own with great pain. It will be like this for a while. We need time to grow and improve the team, and we know that good things take time to find the perfect balance and hit the mark.
“I think it’s a good analogy and it makes perfect sense, but that doesn’t take away the pain of defeat. That’s still there, it still stings, but we need to be extremely clear with our fans, making them understand that it will take time.”
What differences do you feel between this derby and the ones in Manchester and Lisbon?
“I think it’s a special match because it’s being played in the same city, and yesterday we saw the plans for the new stadium. It’s a unique rivalry, but there’s also a deep bond: two great teams in the same city sharing a stadium.
“I don’t think you can find a context like this anywhere else; it’s truly special. But matches like this… well, if we look at Portuguese culture, the feeling is the same: the sense of responsibility for victory, the enthusiasm of the fans, are very similar. The football culture here is closer to that of Portugal.
How are Gila, Rabiot and Moreira?
“They’re ready to join the team. We’ll have to evaluate tomorrow morning whether they’ll be able to start or what the game plan will be. Of course, I already have an idea, but we’ll see tomorrow.”
Has the team regained the energy it didn’t see on Wednesday?
“Everyone knows it’s a special match, a special moment, and when you get to play it, the context doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter if you’re tired. You have to go out there and give it your all, and we’ll be there.
“I said it: I felt it from the first minute of the match against Bologna, watching the game from the bench. We can’t lose a game like that. We can’t afford to concede two goals in two minutes. We can do much better, and there are so many small details that I’ve already discussed with the team.
“But since we returned from international duty three weeks ago, there hasn’t been any real time to train. And I’m not saying other teams are in a different position, I’m speaking for ourselves: I feel like there are so many small things we’re missing simply because we don’t have the time to address them in training.
“So it’s not just a question of energy, although I’ve noticed that, because with energy you can also mask a lot of shortcomings, but there are so many aspects we need time to work on if we want to become a better team.”
Cardinale says that the Scudetto is possible this year and that there will be some signings in January…
“You always have to talk about the Scudetto as the main objective when you’re at Milan, but we’ve already dropped points and we need to fix things. We just have to focus on improving the team step by step.
“What we did wrong in the last match needs to be corrected for the next one. Because if we start thinking too far ahead, about the standings and long-term goals, we risk forgetting what’s really important to us. We want to win consistently, year after year.
“We don’t want to win a season just because we had a bit of luck or because we took shortcuts in the foundations of the project, only to find ourselves back where we started the following year. That’s why we have to fix things day by day, addressing both needs in parallel.
“But when you’re Milan, the moral obligation is to declare that the objective is to win. And at the same time, we have to be aware that next week we have a match that could allow us to close the gap at the top.
“Taking all this into account, we just have to focus on winning the next match, and everything else will calm down. But the objective of the club is always and in any case winning Serie A and that remains our final goal. How long will it take? I don’t know.”
What do you envy Chivu?
“I have zero envy for Chivu because I’m already in the right place, that is, at Milan and not at Inter. That’s the way I am, that’s the way I am.
“I haven’t learned the lesson from my previous experience: I chose more or less the same situation, a club in the midst of rebuilding, which is trying to launch young players like Cisse to build something from scratch.
“It’s a challenge that excites me, I like it, and that’s why I chose this project: I’m really happy with my choice. At the same time, however, I’m not naive: I know very well that you have to win games to buy yourself the time necessary to build something lasting.
“Everyone chooses their own path, and this is mine. Whether it will work or not, no one can know anything now, but I’m really happy because this reflects exactly who I am and the type of work I want to do.
“I understand the questions you ask me: there are days when, in the morning, I think that perhaps I could have had more experience, more calm, a larger squad, fewer injuries. But at the end of the day, I was the one who chose this job, so I’m very happy with it and I’ll go all the way, straight down my path.
“You already know: if I embrace an idea, I certainly don’t change my mind. I can change the tactical system, sure, but I won’t change my conviction, and I’ll do everything I can to win and be successful here.”
What do you think of Inter? Did you speak to Chivu yesterday?
“He’s very nice. We were complaining a bit about the timing of the presentation because we’d played the night before: he won, so he was happier than me, but we had a match to prepare for, and that was our priority.
“But I think we were all really enthusiastic about the new stadium, I think everyone can say that. Inter, for me, is that team we were talking about: a team that can play with their eyes closed, that rotates, like in the last match in midfield, and continues to express themselves in exactly the same way.
“Certain individual characteristics change, but they already know what to do on the pitch even without needing to practice too much. They have an extraordinary ability to read the moments of the game.
“You can clearly sense that, even if they find themselves behind late on, they have the maturity to understand that they can win any match: it’s an awareness you gain when you win so many matches and so many titles.
“They have a lot of talent in their squad, but we’re there to fight against that too and we’ll be ready for the match.”
Goncalo Ramos scored a brace against you in a derby between Benfica and Sporting CP with you on the bench. Could he also be the man for the Milan derby?
“I think it could be. I think all the problems and difficulties Goncalo Ramos is experiencing are primarily a team issue. I think we need to push forward… We control games well, but we play too far from the opponent’s goal.
“We need to raise our centre of gravity and the team on the pitch, spending more time in that area of the pitch to allow Ramos to play his game. He’s playing far from the goal because the team can’t push the opponent in the final thirty metres. I think we need time to correct this aspect as well.
“We want to do better and we will improve in this area. But in any match, a player like Goncalo Ramos, who has already shown he can break the deadlock at any moment and score in any situation, can be the man of the match in the next one.”
