Gennaro Gattuso confessed he’s been working on Milan mentality and helping Gianluigi Donnarumma ahead of must-win games with Atalanta and Fiorentina.
It kicks off on Sunday at 17.00 UK time (16.00 GMT), click here for a match preview.
The Rossoneri are currently in sixth place, but only one point ahead of Atalanta and three from Fiorentina.
Gennaro Gattuso confessed he’s been working on Milan mentality and helping Gianluigi Donnarumma ahead of must-win games with Atalanta and Fiorentina.
It kicks off on Sunday at 17.00 UK time (16.00 GMT), click here for a match preview.
The Rossoneri are currently in sixth place, but only one point ahead of Atalanta and three from Fiorentina.
“I’d be a hypocrite to say we weren’t disappointed by the Coppa Italia Final. The fear is that after their fourth goal, I was afraid we could concede six or seven,” said the Coach in his Press conference after a 4-0 loss to Juventus on Wednesday night.
“I knew even before the game that we had to go into 180 crucial minutes against two sides who are in better shape than us and we’ve got to work to earn everything in these last two games.
“It’s our duty to help lift the players up and achieve our objective, which is to go directly into the Europa League. We’ve been working on the minds of the players, because thinking about it now isn’t going to help. It will leave a mark, especially on those who made mistakes, but errors are part of the sport and we have to help those who were scarred by the experience to raise their confidence.”
Donnarumma made two howlers in that 4-0 defeat and seemed most hurt by the setback.
“It’s a fact that Gigio made two mistakes, but that’s part of sport and being a professional. The important thing is that when someone makes a mistake in life, he needs time to recover, but in sport you immediately have another chance to make up for it. That’s what I love about sport.
“I am the Coach, I do not decide who stays or leaves, nor work on the transfer market. With regards to Donnarumma’s future, you’d have to ask (director of sport Massimiliano) Mirabelli.
“What we forget is that he’s only 19 years old. It’s true he made mistakes too, but in football you need more than just talent, you must have a clear head. It’s already a difficult sport, let alone when your mind isn’t calm. If he’s making more errors, it’s because his mind is being affected by these reports of PSG or whoever. I don’t know who is spreading these reports, it could be his entourage, but it is affecting him.
“I was a player for 20 years, I know that when there was something bothering me, I couldn’t perform to my usual standard. When your wife is annoying you, it’s not easy to do your best work, for example, is it?”
Milan’s final two matches are against Atalanta and Fiorentina, the two sides they are battling with for sixth place.
“For the last couple of years Atalanta have been putting in great performances. They have a strong mentality, press their opponents all over the park.
“We need to replicate the first 55 minutes of our performance against Juventus in the Coppa. It’s true they have a very different style of football and won’t give you a centimetre, they always push forward and press you on the ball, so we must play with technique, but also vehemence. If you lose the ball playing your way out, then Atalanta can seriously hurt you.
“The biggest worry now is how we go into these final 180 minutes. The most important thing now is not to create further tension, to help these lads focus and keep clear heads.
“We’ve seen the good work we did for 55 minutes and must build on that. Our big games this season have been pretty similar, as we played good football for about an hour and then returned home with a heavy defeat. It happened at Arsenal, with Juventus, then again in the Coppa Italia Final.
“We have to figure out why that keeps happening and what mistakes we are making. We all must make fewer errors, myself included.”
Gattuso was asked if it was even worth Milan entering the Europa League via seventh place and the early preliminary rounds or focus on rebuilding just in Serie A.
“Milan have played more games than anyone else this season. If the first game is on July 26, you need to start pre-season training in June and reach Serie A already tired. In any case, let’s focus on playing these last two games.
“I can tell you for sure that I prefer to play in Europe even in those circumstances than to sit at home and not play midweek.”