Cardinale: ‘I’ll stand by Amorim’s side’ and buy more players in January
Milan owner Gerry Cardinale confirms his trust in coach Ruben Amorim, promises new signings in the January transfer window, and confirms talks with Markus Krosche ‘and other people’ over the Head of Football role.
Cardinale spoke to Gazzetta dello Sport ahead of Saturday’s derby della Madonnina between Milan and Inter.
The Rossoneri sit 5th in the standings, seven points below their city rivals and lost their first Serie A game of the season on Wednesday.
Milan started a new project with Amorim last summer, and Cardinale sees the glass half full for now.
“I’m never happy. Let me explain: I’m happy when we win a match, but that means nothing. Ask me if I’m happy when I lift a trophy, or when we win a Scudetto,” he said.
“Then I’ll tell you I’m truly happy. Right now, we still have a lot of work to do, and lately injuries have made me agitated. So right now I’m agitated and constantly focused on where we can improve. I have a job to do, and I won’t stop until we get what we want. Anyone who knows me and has worked with me knows I’m never satisfied until I reach the goal.
“We need to keep improving the squad because I couldn’t do everything I wanted in the summer. We are rebuilding the team, and even though I like the new arrivals, those who stayed and… the names I got rid of, it will probably take another couple of transfer windows to finish everything,” he continued.
“We’re only a quarter of the way there, and the priority is building a team that can handle injuries. If you play in European competitions and you play… Amorim Ball, which is very high-tempo football with quick transitions where everyone runs between nine and 11 kilometres per match, you have an obligation to rotate them.
“That’s why in January we’ll continue to be aggressive and opportunistic in the market, and I’ll continue to strengthen our bench. My style is to act decisively and quickly. For me, what matters is getting what we want: players… worthy of Milan. I won’t waste money, but when I set my mind on signing a footballer, I do everything I can to make it happen.”
Multiple sources claim German director Krosche is close to agreeing to become Milan’s new Head of Football. Krosche remains under contract with Eintracht Frankfurt until 2028, but was officially relieved of his duties earlier this month.
“I’m not close to an announcement, and I’m in no rush. Choosing the head of football is one of the most important things following this summer’s transition, when I sacked everyone and took over running the club. I’m talking with Krösche and with other people, the best in football,” Cardinale said.
“With a season ending in May and a transfer window starting in June, I don’t want to rush. Right now I’m running the club directly, and I enjoy it, but I can’t do it forever because I also have another job.
“Plus, there are people much more qualified than me. In May, however, I had to rebuild Milan, and only someone like me could pull it off. Now a head of football will arrive, but he will be one piece within a much more complex organisational structure. A person who will have to work with me. We’ll do everything together because I will no longer hand over the club’s keys to a sporting director or a head of football.”
Milan have lost three games across all competitions, two in Europa League and one in Serie A, but Cardinale’s trust in Amorim remains unchanged.
“Yes, and I have full faith in him. At the end of Top Gun, ‘my’ movie, Tom Cruise says a great line: ‘I’m not leaving my wingman.’ And I’m not leaving Ruben,” Cardinale said.
“He is in no danger whatsoever. I will stand by his side and I won’t make the mistakes made in recent years. He is my manager, and we’ll keep working together until we manage to make the step up. You can’t win if you keep switching managers. I chose Amorim. If I had made a mistake, I’d admit it, but I don’t think I did. He learned a lot from what happened at Manchester United, and I hired him because he explained the mistakes made there to me.
“He has the right culture; he’s a leader, a manager and a well-prepared coach. At Milanello, the atmosphere is different from the last four years. That is down to him. He’s learning, and the team needs to find cohesion, understand how to rotate players, and keep scoring plenty of goals and winning. For me, a draw is a defeat. A point isn’t the aim of the game: three points are. Only with wins can we bridge the gap with the leaders.”
Tomorrow’s derby against Inter is Milan’s biggest game of the season so far.
“As Amorim says, I look at the derby as ‘just’ a match. Without thinking that, if we win, we’d close the gap in the table. We need to do our job, play football, score, and improve in every area,” Cardinale said.
“I respect [Inter President] Marotta and his club’s organisation, which, even when Inzaghi left, didn’t miss a beat. A bit like Liverpool, who had a record-breaking season with Slot replacing Klopp. That’s what I aspire to for us. Inter have every right to be where they are now. They’ve earned it, and I respect them for that.
“Do I feel the rivalry with them? Absolutely! Do they keep me up at night? Completely. Competition is good, and I’m confident we can reach that level. It’s only a matter of time before we become better, before we lift that trophy. It won’t be easy, and nothing will be handed to us. I know very well what’s at stake tomorrow, and I know how strong they are. And I can’t wait for the derby. I’m buzzing.”
Despite an inconsistent start, the Milan owner feels the Rossoneri can win the Scudetto this season.
“It is entirely possible, one hundred per cent. And I say that without wanting to sound arrogant,” he said.
“I wake up every morning hoping for a small opening, meaning Inter start drawing instead of winning, and we start stringing together a run of wins. Winning is the only thing that matters to me, but let’s take it one match at a time, gaining ground on those ahead of us, matchday by matchday.
“I’m agitated about the four years I’ve lost. I want to build a world-class football organisation, with the right people. I feel Milan still isn’t firing on all cylinders. I want to bring about very rapid change, but I know that isn’t compatible with football. ‘You’ll have to be patient’, they tell me. But I’m… not. And so last summer I brought in Moreira, after Ramos and Gila. I made those deals with the other owners, and I stand by them.”
When asked about his favourite players in the team, Cardinale replied: “I adore Pulisic; same for Rabiot, Moreira, Gila, a beast, Hutchinson, Ramos, and Maignan, our leader… And I could mention every single one of my lads.”
Cardinale spoke to Gazzetta after attending the event at which Milan and Inter unveiled their new stadium.
“It’s a project we’ve been working on for four years, a priority. The new San Siro is a key milestone for Italy, a country where building new facilities seemed impossible,” he concluded.
“We have to find a way to take Serie A back to the level where it belongs. Because a stronger Serie A also means a stronger Milan. The only way to compete with the Premier League is to start transforming our economic profile. I believe a club like Milan, and its fans, deserve infrastructure of this quality. This stadium sends a clear message from RedBird and me about how important all of this is to us. We are doing everything possible to get back to the very top. The milestone reached with the stadium is important, but there is no stadium in the world that, to me, is worth as much as a derby win against Inter.”
