Milan boss Stefano Pioli defends Charles De Ketelaere but admits the Rossoneri must improve defensively.
The Rossoneri suffered a 3-0 loss against Chelsea in the Champions League on Wednesday night and will host their arch-rivals Juventus at San Siro tomorrow.
“Some games are worth more than three points and tomorrow’s game has a considerable weight,” the coach admitted at a press conference.
“We are motivated regardless of the opponent, we didn’t play as we know against Chelsea. We are all responsible, starting with myself. We are determined to bounce back.”
New Milan signing De Ketelaere has been criticised by fans and media after an unconvincing start to the season, but Pioli defended the Belgian starlet.
“He has a bright future ahead, I am satisfied with what he is doing. I remember that many criticised Leao and Tonali in the past. Charles has talent and needs time, he is on the right path.”
The 21-year-old joined the Rossoneri in a €32m deal from Club Brugge last summer and has yet to find the net in 11 appearances across all competitions this season.
Milan have several players out of action, including Mike Maignan, Davide Calabria and Alexis Saelemaekers, but Theo Hernandez is ready to play.
“He trained with the team yesterday, if he confirms that he’s fit tomorrow, he’ll be ready for tomorrow,” said Pioli.
“We have conceded too many goals and we must improve. On Wednesday, Chelsea made the most of our errors, we must pay more attention.
“The lads were tired yesterday, but I saw their determination. This doesn’t mean that we will win. We’ll give our best, but we should not forget about Juventus’ objectives. We must raise the bar, it’s clear that we can do more.
“Juventus usually start games with a high barycentre and tend to sit deep during the match. We must play as a unit and don’t make obvious errors.
“Allegri is a valuable coach in charge of a great team. We want to have the right approach, when we do it, we become a dangerous team.”
Milan have lost two of their opening 11 games across all competitions and are currently three points behind Serie A table leaders Atalanta and Napoli. Next Tuesday, they face Chelsea again in the Champions League, this time at the Stadio Meazza.