Stefano Pioli insists he saw ‘progress’ from Milan in their 1-0 victory over Fiorentina, even if it wasn’t the most exhilarating performance, and jokes he could be Francesco Camarda’s grandfather.
The Rossoneri were without a Serie A win in four rounds, so badly needed these points to get back on track and retain third place, especially after Napoli beat Atalanta earlier today.
It took a Theo Hernandez penalty to decide the match, as he was brought down clumsily by Fabiano Parisi, but Mike Maignan also made a sensational stoppage-time save with his face to keep out Rolando Mandragora.
“It is natural that our performance was not the sharpest, not the one with the most quality. We had a good first half, then mentally it couldn’t be our best performance and yet we made progress there by suffering, holding out and bringing home the points,” Pioli told Sky Sport Italia.
“We had in our heads that we had always either been pegged back or lost in the second half during the previous matches. This victory must give us more confidence and faith going forward.”
The coach did not agree with suggestions that Milan have lost their identity or need to completely transform their approach.
“Mentality makes the difference. The atmosphere in the stadium was not the same as usual either. I think we had the right approach to emerge from this difficult moment and prepare for the next match that will be decisive for our Champions League ambitions.
“I am sure that when we get results a bit more consistently, we can then get back to playing our beautiful style of football. There are moments where you have to do things this way.”
Milan will be at San Siro again on Tuesday to host Borussia Dortmund in a showdown for qualification.
“The win over PSG boosted our chances and a victory against Dortmund would make a huge difference. The lads know the kind of performance they need that night, so in a way it makes my work easier.”
This evening also allowed Milan to make history, as Pioli gave Francesco Camarda his debut at age 15 years and 260 days, the youngest ever Serie A player.
His introduction was out of sheer desperation, as Olivier Giroud was suspended, with Rafael Leao and Noah Okafor injured, leaving only Luka Jovic who was once again disappointing.
“Francesco is a good lad, he is working well and we also need his freshness. He is very young, but also very mature. We were all very happy for him. I could be his grandfather…”
Milan were perhaps more defensive than usual, sitting deeper and inviting Fiorentina on, knowing the Viola have serious problems converting their pressure into goals.
“Fiorentina hardly ever pushed their full-backs up the way we expected them to in the first half. In the second, we did not intend to sit deeper, but we were forced into it by them putting long balls forward. It’s not our general approach, but we proved already against PSG that we know how to grit our teeth and hold out.
“The thing that concerns me is that we risked on set plays and that is happening a lot recently, we need to work on that.”
Juventus and Inter go head-to-head tomorrow evening, so Pioli was asked what result the Milan coach is hoping for, considering he is in third place?
“The ideal for us would be a draw, as it could allow us to close up on the teams ahead of us. There is a very long way to go this season.”