Torino coach Marco Giampaolo stressed he’s ‘not worried’ about facing former club Milan, quashed reports of a move for Rade Krunic and said captain Andrea Belotti is ‘not irreplaceable’.
The Granata have been linked with the Rossoneri’s Krunic in recent weeks, but the former Milan coach said the midfielder, who is currently out with COVID-19, is not moving to Toro.
Torino coach Marco Giampaolo stressed he’s ‘not worried’ about facing former club Milan, quashed reports of a move for Rade Krunic and said captain Andrea Belotti is ‘not irreplaceable’.
The Granata have been linked with the Rossoneri’s Krunic in recent weeks, but the former Milan coach said the midfielder, who is currently out with COVID-19, is not moving to Toro.
“I wish Rade a speedy recovery from COVID,” Giampaolo said at a press conference. “I coached him at Empoli, then again at Milan, even though I practically didn’t coach him because he was recovering from an injury.
“Krunic is a player who has grown, he’s strong, he’s got quality, but he’s not coming to play at Toro.”
Giampaolo only lasted seven games in charge of Milan last term and was replaced by Stefano Pioli, who has enjoyed huge success at the Giuseppe Meazza.
“I don’t worry about playing Milan, sooner or later, you must first the League leaders too,” he said. “I worry more about how the calendar is set up.
“Toro are the only team that play so often, with five games in 13 days. All the other teams have an average day or two of extra recovery.”
Belotti has scored nine goals in 15 games to help Torino climb out of the relegation zone, but Giampaolo said he’s ‘not irreplaceable’ and will be able to rest the 27-year-old Italy international.
“Belotti, together with [Tomas] Rincon, is the player who has the most minutes, when I tell myself that I’m worried about the tight matches, I’m also referring to this.
“To say that Belotti is irreplaceable is a lie: players should not die of fatigue or risk losing them due to lack of clarity or physical performance.”
Giampaolo then returned to speak about the match against League leaders Milan.
“Milan have shown they are a strong team even with absentees,” he said. “When you manage to build a string of consecutive and useful results, it’s because you have managed to build something important.
“We haven’t brought home a result against the big teams so far, despite having played good games. The moment will come when we play good games and take the result home with us too.”