Stefano Pioli explains what Olivier Giroud brought to Milan, the importance of their victory away to Napoli, but he continues to insist ‘Inter are the favourites for the Scudetto.’
This was the first time after 11 meetings that Pioli had been able to beat Luciano Spalletti, previously managing only three draws.
Serie A | Napoli 0-1 Milan: Giroud decides Scudetto showdown
The result was sealed by Olivier Giroud, who managed to redirect a wayward Davide Calabria effort into the far bottom corner.
It puts Milan top on 60 points, followed by Inter on 58 (with a game in hand), Napoli 57 and Juventus still in it at 53.
“These are three important points, we beat a strong side that caused us a lot of problems, because the lads worked so very, very hard off the ball and deserved this victory,” Pioli told DAZN.
“We have a very attack-minded channel down the left, so if we pay a little in terms of defending, it’s worth the risk for the potential we have going forward there. We tried to be aggressive, Tomori and Kalulu worked really well on Osimhen.
“We wanted an aggressive midfield, but also one with quality, knowing we could find gaps between their lines. We were in the game from start to finish, it was a good performance, but there are more delicate matches coming up.”
Napoli had won 1-0 at San Siro in controversial circumstances, with a late Franck Kessie goal disallowed, so this means the head-to-head record is identical.
If two teams finish level on points in Serie A, head-to-head record is the first criteria to divide them.
“It was a head-to-head, we are satisfied, but nothing has changed from before the game. We still have only one more point than we did at this stage last season, so there’s plenty more to be done.”
Milan picked up more points against the top seven clubs than those closer to the relegation zone.
“That is a situation we absolutely need to improve, especially as there are few head-to-heads left in the season other than Lazio and Atalanta. I would not name Spezia in the run of results, because that should not have ended that way, but it is true we haven’t been able to dominate games the way we should.
“There are difficulties for everyone in Serie A, we are not perfect, but this is the time to prove we’ve learned from our mistakes with the right attitude and quality.”
Giroud has brought so much to the Rossoneri and tends to score in clutch games, such as his brace in the derby with Inter.
“We wanted to bring in players who have already won, who know what it means to work towards important targets and people who are great professionals. It just took a video call last summer for us to all realise who we were dealing with.
“It remains a very young squad in general, so having someone with that kind of experience really helps.”
Pioli was asked who are the Scudetto favourites after this weekend’s results.
“Inter are still the favourites because they are the reigning champions and have a game in hand. They are a very strong team who know what it means to win. The sooner we have a table with all the teams playing the same number of games, the sooner we’ll be able to judge.”
Breakthrough for Milan 😤
Calabria’s shot looked to be going wide, but Olivier Giroud was in the right place to tap home past Ospina.
A HUGE goal in Naples! 💥 pic.twitter.com/vNzbcl5v84
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) March 6, 2022
At this point, Milan could be 15 points ahead with 18 points to play for and Pioli would still say Inter are the favorites to win it.
@Jake as he should, this Milan squad clearly plays better when they are the underdog. When they are the favorite they lack intensity. He wants them to maintain the underdog mentality.
It’s because Inter have a game in hand against Bologna.
You would expect them to win that match.
How long will Inter continue to have a game in hand? Play it and get it done with!
A wise statement from Pioli after learning what happened in the last season. Last season he and his Rossonerri were very noisy and overconfident, and felt they would won the scudetto
On avarage only inter have had better performances compared to others and just like at the beginning of the season the team with better performances will win the league. Scrapping points can only get you so far.
If there was a trophy 🏆 for winning against your direct opponents, Milan would already have one but unfortunately these direct wins aren’t enough, it doesn’t give extra points and if we want to have a chance at winning this league this season, we can’t keep throwing away points against relegation teams.. Pioli keeps saying these teams are difficult and these same teams loose to Inter and other opponents with big margins and it’s been like that over the years you have been charge and we cant win anything like that.
I hope we can raise our game against the underdogs because we can’t afford to drop points at this level!
Truth be told,Milan has the chance to win the Scudetto but lack of dedication from some players are the issues, you don’t settle for 3piont,you settle for goals.