Amorim: ‘Milan were tired from minute 1, I’m not here to defend myself’
Milan coach Ruben Amorim admits the Rossoneri looked ‘tired from minute one’ but insists injuries-related rotation limits aren’t an excuse: ‘I’m not here to defend myself.’
Milan lost their first Serie A game this season on Wednesday, falling 4-2 to Bologna at home.
The visitors scored the opening goal, but the Rossoneri turned things round before the break, scoring twice through Alphadjo Cisse. But the game was far from over as Bologna scored three times after the break to secure their second consecutive win.
Amorim spoke to DAZN at full time, looking pretty frustrated.
“Many games, many players out. It was hard for us,” he said.
“I felt from the first minute that the team was a little bit tired and without much energy. We conceded two goals quickly; we tried to come back, and we had a great opportunity with Camarda. This amount of games was hard for us.”
Milan were without eight players for this match, including regular starters Mario Gila, Samuel Chukwueze and Adrien Rabiot and summer signing Diego Moreira.
Is any of them expected to return to action for the derby against Inter next Saturday?
“We need to look at the context; it’s not like the game has no context,” Amorim said.
“I don’t know how many players I’ll have. We’ll see tomorrow, see the players, and in two days we’ll prepare for the game. We are concerned about everything, but we’re focusing on how many players we’ll have.”
A pundit in the DAZN studio asked why, besides injuries, Milan keep struggling with consistency.
“It’s not just that. I didn’t say we lost because of injuries. I said lack of energy because we can’t make the same rotation,” Amorim hit back.
“It’s hard for us to press all the time; when we stop playing our game, we suffer. A new manager can’t make the team play different football in a few months. That is something you should understand; I think you understand.
“If you look at the game, we started suffering a goal, and we turned things around. Of course, from the first minute, we felt we didn’t have the energy to play that game, and then, when you talk about mistakes in the studio, it’s not just a tactical aspect.
“It’s also because we are so tired at times, but that’s not an excuse. Don’t worry. We must be ready for the derby; I’m just showing the facts.”
How will they prepare for the upcoming derby?
“We are going to prepare for the game with the time we have and the solutions we have. We have the responsibility to fight to win,” Amorim concluded.
“We are going to be a very good team. Sometimes we lose, sometimes we win, but in the future we’ll be a very strong team. I believe in it, and when we have all the players, we’ll be ready to fight in every game. No excuses; we need to try to win the game. I don’t want to defend myself. Every time we have a bad result, it seems like I need to be here. You guys in the studio can say whatever you want; the truth is that we lost 4-2 at home. The context doesn’t matter; we are a club like Milan, and we can’t allow it to happen. We’ll try to win the next game.”
