Milan director Paolo Maldini rules out January signings for the Rossoneri and warns Andriy Shevchenko about their upcoming meeting in Serie A.
The Rossoneri lost two games in a row against Fiorentina and Sassuolo, so they are now three points off table leaders Napoli.
On Wednesday, they travel to Genoa to face their former striker Shevchenko who is now in charge of the Grifone.
“Sheva proved to have courage. He loves this job and he accepted a tough task,” Maldini told Sky Sport Italia after receiving the Golden Foot Award.
“He is a champion and he will prove it. I support him, but I always want to win, that’s what sport is about. I want to win even when I play table tennis with my brother.”
What’s the best memory he has about Shevchenko?
“I think we reached the peak in Manchester [in the 2003 Champions League Final] when he scored that penalty. Shevchenko adapted to us when he arrived, he had amazing talent, but with different habits, he changed and became the striker he was.”
What does Maldini make of Milan’s defeat against Sassuolo? Was it a consequence of the efforts they had made to win against Atletico Madrid?
“Maybe, but we want no excuses,” the former defender said.
“Sassuolo played better than us. We turned off, and there are no excuses. Now, we have a new chance on Wednesday.
“We are still at the beginning of the season. We know we must do something exceptional to win a trophy.”
Are Milan planning to make new signings in January?
“Our team is competitive right now. I don’t think we’ll do something,” he claimed. “But talks are ongoing for contract extensions. As long as there’s time, there’s still hope.”
Both Franck Kessié and Alessio Romagnoli see their deals expire in the summer. The Italian defender seems willing to take a pay cut, while Kessié has reportedly demanded a new €9m-a-year deal.
The Serie A giants are also in talks to extend with Theo Hernandez, Ismael Bennacer and Rafael Leao, whose contracts run out in 2024.
Oh I’m sure they will do “something”.