Conceicao explains why formation is ‘not so important’ and gives update on injured players | OneFootball

AC Milan head coach Sergio Conceicao spoke to the media on the eve of his first game in charge, admitting that it has been difficult to prepare for.

It has been a whirlwind last few days for Milan, who went into their final game of 2024 with Paulo Fonseca in charge before sacking him on December 30. A few hours after that statement came out, Conceicao was announced as the new coach.

The Rossoneri have gone from one Portuguese to another with the hope of resurrecting their domestic form, but the first task for the new coach to take on is the four-team Super Cup.

Conceicao gave an interview to SportMediaset on the eve of the Supercoppa Italiana semi-final against Juventus – in addition to doing his pre-match press conference – and his comments were relayed by MilanPress.

On preparing for the game itself…

“We tried to work on all the moments of the game. There are many small things that need to get across in terms of message, play, schemes, set pieces, both defensive and offensive.

“I like to go into detail and it’s not easy to prepare for such an important challenge like this in a short time, but we don’t need excuses because I already knew the times to prepare for this match.

“I’m sorry because there are 3-4 players out that we’re missing, when the group is complete the coaches are happier. We hope to play a good match.

“I live every day with great intensity and passion, I feel like I have little time for everything. Tomorrow is a different match, we have to live up to the history of a team like Milan. We’ll try to win.”

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On the injured players…

“Pulisic has done it with the group, there is some pain. Leao is out. Musah has just returned with the group. Let’s see which players are available, but even those who have trained do not have the 90 minutes.

“We have to do this management and think about putting together a competitive team. I am very happy with the group, they have understood what we have to do to improve their performance.”

On the formation he will use…

“This is not so important for me because the base can be a 4-3-3, 4-4-2, 3-5-2, 3-4-3, after that it depends on the strategy of the match. The dynamics of the lads is important, as is being a compact and aggressive team, knowing where to press the opponent and the tempos of the game.

“I know it is not easy to go through all this in a few days, but we tried to give our best and be very objective in what we want in the match. Not too much information. I am sure that in a few weeks we will be at a different level.”

On facing his son Francisco, who is at Juventus…

“How do you stop him? I know him, as well as Vlahovic, Yildiz, Thuram, Koopmeiners, all of Juve. He is not the only player to stop. For me it is important to look at the team, not this or that player.

“We must pay attention to certain players in the collective and be ready for these good young players with the qualities they have.”