AC Milan boss Sergio Conceicao highlighted the half-time interval as critical in our ability to come from behind and defeat Juventus.
The Rossoneri secured a 2-1 win over Juve in the Italian Super Cup, and in turn we now advance to the final to take on Inter on Monday.
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Despite having just a few days to work with his players after being appointed as new Milan boss earlier this week, Conceicao was able to inspire his side and get the victory, and it’s hopefully a positive start and foundation that we can build on.
Although we looked disciplined and organised in the first half, Milan lacked any real quality or threat in the final third in the opening 45 minutes, but something certainly changed at half-time, and Conceicao gave his assessment on how the game played out as he praised the change in his players in the second half.
“It was tough in these conditions, in three or four days to prepare for such an important game,” he told MilanTV. “However, as I said before the match, we don’t make excuses, we need to look at the players we have available and have the heart, hunger, desire and ambition to do all we can to win the game. In the end we won. We weren’t great in the first half, in the second half, much better at all levels.
“Yes, there is a lot of quality here. Juve have individual and collective quality, but so do we. We had to do what we had prepared in terms of organisation. In the first half, it looked like the Milan of a few weeks ago, with doubts, we didn’t time our press in defence, too slow with the ball, didn’t get in behind enough. Up top, Alvaro [Morata] was making support runs, but we needed our wingers to get in behind, but we never did that. The midfield was a bit sluggish.
“We changed our attitude at the break. In football and in life, you’ve got to be brave. If you think about what you need to do, but then don’t do that, it becomes difficult.”
Having said himself in his first interview as Milan boss, words are just words, and ultimately he’ll be judged on results on the pitch. That said, it’s hard not to be encouraged and buy in to what Conceicao’s saying, as he is seemingly instilling a winning culture and attitude among his players.
Combined with his substitutions, his half-time team-talk was fundamental in us turning this game around to secure the win, as we played with more intent and conviction in the second half to deservedly go ahead, and that is hopefully part of setting the new standard at the club moving forward.
It will be difficult to follow this up as Inter will pose a more difficult challenge, but with a couple more days to work on the training pitches and get his ideas across, Conceicao will hopefully continue to implement his preferred style and the players will continue to become more effective in executing his desired gameplan.
