Davide Calabria and Olivier Giroud have not hidden their frustration after Milan‘s disappointing results lately so coach Stefano Pioli seems to have one more issue to solve while the Rossoneri fight for the Serie A title and a spot in the Champions League Round of 16.
Milan saw Napoli recover from two goals down at the Stadio Maradona on Sunday, collecting a 2-2 draw. The unhappiness of Rossoneri stars Rafael Leao and Giroud emerged in the second half when Pioli replaced them with Noah Okafor and Luka Jovic.
Leao repeatedly asked Pioli ‘Why, why?’ once he approached the bench last night, while Giroud screamed ‘noooo’ and waved his hands in frustration.
The French striker admitted being frustrated after the final whistle and revealed players didn’t know whether to attack or defend after Napoli had scored their first goal.
This was the second time in a week that a Milan player openly vented off frustration. The first one was Davide Calabria, who spoke to reporters after a 3-0 Champions League defeat against PSG last week, saying “Anyone who doesn’t believe should just stay at home.”
Pioli immediately replied by saying: “He was wrong to say that. There is nobody who works at Milanello without the right focus or intensity. It can happen in the heat of the moment after a match to say things you don’t mean.”
Pioli and Calabria cleared the air after their post-match interviews in Paris but, as reported by Italian media, including Calciomercato.com, there’s a feeling some Milan players are becoming increasingly unhappy.
The Italian tactician had commented on the argument with Calabria right before the Napoli game on Saturday.
“We want to give our best to reach our target and we didn’t make it. We can’t be happy and smiling after a defeat. We have clarified and now it’s even better than before,” he said.
“False things were said in the press room after the game, but it’s all good, we have cleared the air and we go forward.
“Calabria was not talking about his teammates, but he referred to the environment,” continued Pioli.
“We believe in it, we work in a certain way at Milanello, and we give our all until the end. There is no problem, I talk to my players and we have cleared the air.”
Milan sit third in the Serie A table three points below leaders Inter. They are fourth in their Champions League group and have yet to score a goal in a European match this season.