Paolo Maldini admits he feels some of the ‘goosebumps’ only the Champions League can bring, but in the quarter-finals they ‘cannot think we’re on the same level as Bayern Munich, Manchester City or Real Madrid.’
The Rossoneri are one of the most historically successful clubs in the competition, winning the trophy seven times, but also had a spell where they failed to qualify for seven years in a row.
They got the better of Antonio Conte’s Tottenham Hotspur to book their first Champions League quarter-final spot since 2012, 1-0 on aggregate thanks to the Brahim Diaz goal early into the first leg.
“We feel happy, pleased, proud of the journey we had and how we got here,” Maldini told Milan TV.
“We cannot think that we are in the eight best teams in Europe, but now that we are here, we’ll give it a go. We had lost confidence in January, but conceding zero goals over two legs against Tottenham shows the level of maturity this team has reached.”
The director has repeatedly reminded fans that the Rossoneri nowadays are a very different beast to the Silvio Berlusconi side that dominated European football, getting past Tottenham despite having a fraction of their budget.
“I felt the same goosebumps that the great Milan had given me all those years ago. The lads deserved it, so did the fans, who stood by us even during the difficult times.
“The Scudetto made something extraordinary seem as if it was normal, but we must always remember where we started from. This is a city, a club and fans accustomed to certain levels and all that helps accelerate the maturation of many young players.
“Those who started with us four years ago told a story and we never lied about what the project was or what we expected of them. They did well to confirm our expectations.”
Maldini also deserves a great deal of credit for standing up against the club hierarchy’s attempts to sign Ralf Rangnick as coach, convincing them to stick with Stefano Pioli, who went on to win the Serie A title.
“We understood each other straight away. He has always been a perfect communicator and a great coach. In difficult moments, you evaluate the nature of the man and with Stefano we are at the highest level.”
Now that Milan are in the Champions League quarter-finals, they can consider the rest of the season a bonus.
“Our objectives this term were to finish in the top four and get through the Champions League group stage. It’ll be tough in Serie A, but we need to get that spot.”
Is there anyone who Maldini and the Rossoneri would prefer to avoid in the draw for the quarter-finals?
“I’d rather avoid other Italian clubs, because we want more Italians to go as far as possible. It doesn’t matter who we get at this stage, we cannot think that we are on the same level as Bayern Munich, Manchester City or Real Madrid.”