AC Milan staged a dramatic comeback to defeat Parma 3-2 at San Siro in the 22nd round of Serie A, with Tijjani Reijnders and Samuel Chukwueze scoring the equalizer and winning goal after the 90th minute.
The match was marked by bold decisions, including the halftime substitution of Rafael Leao and Theo Hernandez with the score at 1-1, significant yellow cards – including one that will force Youssouf Fofana to miss the derby against Inter – and high tension, culminating in a heated exchange between Davide Calabria and Sergio Conceicao after the final whistle.
The Portuguese coach spoke to DAZN after the match, addressing several key points:
On the confrontation with Calabria:
“Sometimes with the adrenaline during the match, we live this sport with passion… These are things that I’m okay with. It was a match situation. That’s how it went. It’s like with children: when we go to a restaurant, if there’s inappropriate behavior, we have to say something, otherwise it’s not good. I’m like that, maybe we said a word too many, but it’s not a problem. They are always protected by me, they know we’re creating an important bond. And it was seen today in how we won, there was no more strategy but spirit.”
On the many comebacks:
“I didn’t want these comebacks, I wanted to win calmly before (laughs). However, this shows character, we need to improve on the gameplay.”
On substituting Leao and Theo Hernandez at halftime:
“The choices I made at halftime were made to improve the team. Leao and Theo have given us a lot in the past, even in the recent past. They continue to be important and I’ll say right away that they will play in Zagreb. These are coach’s choices, they pay me for this.”
On the step to take:
“We lack balance between offensive and defensive phases. Sometimes we look at the attackers who have to score goals, but it’s the whole process of the team that needs to arrive more often in the 30 meters to score goals. We need to improve defensively, they understand where and how to do it, but then we need to add other things. Not just pressing and shortening, but also defensive coverage.”
On Fofana missing the derby:
“He was sorry, he’ll miss a game on the field. Anyway, I was the one to blame for putting him on the field. I know that for the fans, three points in the derby are important, but for me, today’s points are also important. Otherwise, we risked losing one and the other, and I didn’t want that.”
On the transfer market:
“Let’s see. I’m not bluffing, but I’m focused on the players we have. After Juventus, I said we needed something more and I’m not backing down. So I hope something more can arrive, if not we’ll go to war with what we have.”
On Pavlovic:
“For me, they are all starters. Pavlovic has worked well during the weeks and you could see he had a lot of desire. I like players with this spirit. Believe me, otherwise I would say the opposite as I have done other times: I have a locker room that has accepted to work differently compared to the past. We are changing many things, there is a transition and we suffer a bit. It’s like this for all changes.”
