Yahoo Sports Fonseca answers questions on Milan future, tactical approach and relations with Zlatan
AC Milan head coach Paulo Fonseca has claimed that he is not thinking about his future, while insisting that he feels the trust from the club in the work he is trying to do.
Fonseca is under serious pressure to produce a positive result and several reliable sources are suggesting that he needs one in order to keep his job, after a start to the season which has seen Milan win just one of five games.
The latest blow came in midweek as Liverpool ran out 3-1 winners in the first round of the Champions League, a scoreline that in truth could have been even more damaging on the balance of play, and it completely evaporated all momentum from the 4-0 win over Venezia four days prior.
To make things worse, the one-sided nature of the derby in the past couple of seasons and how strong Inter are at the moment means that this is not the kind of game that should yield a win on paper, as unpredictable as the Derby della Madonnina can be.
Fonseca spoke to the reporters who gathered at Milanello for his pre-match press conference on the eve of the game, and his comments were relayed by MilanNews.
After the defeat against Liverpool, we saw photos that showed unity and compactness…
“Yes. There is great frustration on everyone’s part, but awareness that we are united to get out of this situation. The team understands the moment and we work together to try to do better. The solution now is to work to learn and try to do better.”
Is the derby the biggest occasion or the most complicated match?
“We are going to play a very strong team, it could be an important match for me. We have a lot to gain in this match because I think we have to think positively. If we win it could be an important thing for us at this moment.”
How do you feel about your future?
“I don’t think about that. There’s the match against Inter, I’m concentrating on my work and being ready for tomorrow’s match. The team and the match are the most important things.”
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What did you and Ibra talk about? Did he reiterate his trust in you?
“I’ve always felt the trust in my work from the club. I understand the curiosity when Zlatan comes here, but I don’t talk about what we say to each other. It’s always positive, it’s normal: Zlatan was here as he was the other times.”
Your idea of football has rarely been seen so far. What’s the problem?
“I can have many reasons to explain it, but I don’t want to find excuses. I want to address what’s happening with work, talking to my players to understand what we have to do. We have good moments but we don’t have consistency.
“What I have to say, what I feel, is that the team is growing every day. We need to have continuity to get where I want. If we need time, yes. It’s true that Abraham has arrived now, we haven’t had the whole team for a long time, but I don’t want to find excuses. I want to focus on work.”
Is there anything you wouldn’t do again?
“No. I do what I believe in. I can’t do what I don’t believe in. I continue to believe in what I think a team should be and I continue to work in what I believe in.”
Is there anything you saw this week after Liverpool that makes you say the derby will be the turning point in the players’ attitude?
“I’m not lying. We were talking about this now. Today I arrive here, derby, difficult match… But I arrive here with confidence. It’s one thing if we feel that the players are sad, not at ease. I would have liked to show you this week of work, but I can’t arrive here and not convey confidence.
“The truth is that these three days of work have been fantastic. And so I go to the match with confidence, I can’t do otherwise. And that’s why I have confidence in the future, I can’t say any different because this is the truth.”
Will this confidence lead you to have an aggressive tactical attitude?
“Obviously for each match we have different strategies. We know that we are facing a very strong team, we have prepared the match based on the opponents who are very strong. There is one thing I don’t know how to do: give the ball to the other teams.
“We want to play, we want to have the initiative, we want to dominate when we can, we want to defend well because the team has done well collectively. We want to prepare the match based on the opponent we have tomorrow.”
Are you convinced that the club have given you a good team or an excellent team?
“I received what we expected to form a very strong team. Are we already a very strong team? No.”
We have seen two Milans: the one in Parma and the one in the first half against Lazio. Is a third version possible that does both phases well?
“Why do you think we didn’t concede anything against Lazio in the first half? Because we had the ball, and when we have the ball we don’t defend. That’s the truth, that’s the difference. We were close, compact, but we had the ball.”
At the moment Milan doesn’t seem to have heart, mentality and organisation… How can you win the derby?
“By scoring more goals than Inter, that’s how you win a match.”
