Filippo Inzaghi faced the press ahead of Milan-Fiorentina.
MILAN- Filippo Inzaghi gave his pre-match press conference at Milanello on Saturday afternoon. This is what was said:
Inzaghi opened with the following: "The most important thing for a coach is the balance in the team. On the right flank, we’ve done very well, but we’ve also improved out on the left. It hasn’t been easy for De Sciglio to adapt but he’s now doing very well. The same goes for Sulley and Bonaventura, Saponara ,Van Ginkel. I’ve had to change the team at times and I’ve not been able to let Stephan play with consistency like we’ve done with Honda".
On the President’s visit and the business meetings at Milanello on Friday: "I was very pleased that President Berlusconi and joint-CEO Barbara Berlusconi invited me to such an important event. Listening to the President for 4 hours was very interesting. The role of the coach is changing but I’ve just arrived and I want to be respected for what I achieve out on the pitch."
Commenting on Sunday’s visitors to the San Siro: "It will be a tough match against Fiorentina. They play very good football and it’s for this reason that in Europe they struggle less than the others. A complete Fiorentina side are on the same level as Roma and Juve. In Greece, they played well and with just 1 first team player with respects to tomorrow’s match. I would like to see a very lively San Siro tomorrow. We need our fans because it won’t be an easy match. They need to be the team’s 12th man, as they often are. Us coaches have a wonderful job, but it’s very tiring. I thank Vincenzo Montella for his kind words, he’s a young coach with important footballing ideas. I wish him luck from Monday!"
Asked about Jeremy Menez "I’ve spoken to Jeremy and he’s always had a good attitude since he’s arrived. At Verona he was coming back from an injury and so he was a bit fearful of hurting himself. Menez can play as the main striker or out wide in a 4-3-3. Tomorrow I will have to decide between him, El Shaarawy and Torres, but they are problems that all coaches would like. We played our best match of the season against Verona, which means we’re on the right path and that we cannot take steps back. If they had told me at the start of the season that I would have 5 points more than Fiorentina, I would have definitely taken it."
Inzaghi continued: "I have to make choices based on the fitness of the players. I think about the opponent and then I think about what is best for my team. We’re Milan and we cannot think about not imposing our game. We have to have a good attitude. We have a big chance and we need our fans. Abbiati knew that Diego Lopez was going to join and we made this choice together. Diego then picked up an injury and Abbiati has shown himself to be the great goalkeeper that we all know. The choice tomorrow can be right or criticised, but it’s down to me to choose. We have to have our feet on the ground. Some of the players had lost a bit of confidence in their abilities which is why I have to always keep the motivation high. The side has never been out of Europe and we have to take something positive from that, which is the ability to train all week for the match and work on how to beat our opponents.
Inzaghi opened with the following: "The most important thing for a coach is the balance in the team. On the right flank, we’ve done very well, but we’ve also improved out on the left. It hasn’t been easy for De Sciglio to adapt but he’s now doing very well. The same goes for Sulley and Bonaventura, Saponara ,Van Ginkel. I’ve had to change the team at times and I’ve not been able to let Stephan play with consistency like we’ve done with Honda".
On the President’s visit and the business meetings at Milanello on Friday: "I was very pleased that President Berlusconi and joint-CEO Barbara Berlusconi invited me to such an important event. Listening to the President for 4 hours was very interesting. The role of the coach is changing but I’ve just arrived and I want to be respected for what I achieve out on the pitch."
Commenting on Sunday’s visitors to the San Siro: "It will be a tough match against Fiorentina. They play very good football and it’s for this reason that in Europe they struggle less than the others. A complete Fiorentina side are on the same level as Roma and Juve. In Greece, they played well and with just 1 first team player with respects to tomorrow’s match. I would like to see a very lively San Siro tomorrow. We need our fans because it won’t be an easy match. They need to be the team’s 12th man, as they often are. Us coaches have a wonderful job, but it’s very tiring. I thank Vincenzo Montella for his kind words, he’s a young coach with important footballing ideas. I wish him luck from Monday!"
Asked about Jeremy Menez "I’ve spoken to Jeremy and he’s always had a good attitude since he’s arrived. At Verona he was coming back from an injury and so he was a bit fearful of hurting himself. Menez can play as the main striker or out wide in a 4-3-3. Tomorrow I will have to decide between him, El Shaarawy and Torres, but they are problems that all coaches would like. We played our best match of the season against Verona, which means we’re on the right path and that we cannot take steps back. If they had told me at the start of the season that I would have 5 points more than Fiorentina, I would have definitely taken it."
Inzaghi continued: "I have to make choices based on the fitness of the players. I think about the opponent and then I think about what is best for my team. We’re Milan and we cannot think about not imposing our game. We have to have a good attitude. We have a big chance and we need our fans. Abbiati knew that Diego Lopez was going to join and we made this choice together. Diego then picked up an injury and Abbiati has shown himself to be the great goalkeeper that we all know. The choice tomorrow can be right or criticised, but it’s down to me to choose. We have to have our feet on the ground. Some of the players had lost a bit of confidence in their abilities which is why I have to always keep the motivation high. The side has never been out of Europe and we have to take something positive from that, which is the ability to train all week for the match and work on how to beat our opponents.