FC Porto coach Sergio Conceicao explains Milan created little not because they lacked quality, but ‘we neutralised them’ with a ferocious high press.
The Portuguese side had won 1-0 when these sides met last month at the Estadio Do Dragao and took the lead here after six minutes through Luis Diaz, but Chancel Mbemba accidentally prodded a Pierre Kalulu cross over his own line for the final 1-1 result.
“We played two really good games against Milan, even if today we were lacking precision and efficiency in front of goal,” Conceicao told Amazon Prime Italia.
“There was huge pressure on us today and we had the opportunities to win here at San Siro. Our greatest strength tonight was pressing the Rossoneri midfielders so hard that they couldn’t play and one of those moves sparked the goal.
“Milan created very little in the first half, not because they lack quality, but because we successfully neutralised them.
“Our intensity level dropped a little after the break, but we still had the chance to go 2-0 up when we hit the woodwork.”
Conceicao is familiar with Serie A, having played at Parma, Lazio and Inter, so could he bring his coaching philosophy to Italy?
“The way I see football is a high press, incisive vertical passes, with possession always aimed at moving towards the opposition goal.
“We are very focused on keeping a high defensive line. It’s not easy, but the team really benefits from that work.”
As he says, they did a high press. And as I always say, Milan always struggles with a high press, even against weaker Serie A teams when they play like that. If the other side doesn’t press aggressively, we can play a good game, otherwise we struggle to string 2 passes together. It’s been the case for a long time, and although we now play better, we still struggle with this issue.