AC Milan manager Sergio Conceicao expressed the need for his forwards to exhibit more selfishness in front of the goal. This comes after his two-game winning streak, following his appointment, was put on hold by a disappointing 1-1 draw against lowly Cagliari in the Serie A match on Saturday.
Cagliari surprised Milan by swiftly equalizing in the 55th minute through defender Nadir Zortea, just four minutes after Alvaro Morata opened the scoring for Milan from close range, marking Conceicao’s debut in Serie A.
Conceicao shared his disappointment with Sky Sport, stating, “I had higher expectations in every aspect. I’ve been a coach for 13 years, and in comparison to what we have achieved, this was the weakest first half since I started coaching. We lacked rhythm, quality… and we didn’t perform at our best or exhibit intelligence at this level.”
Despite creating 24 chances, with 11 of them on target, Milan struggled to convert until Morata finally found the back of the net 10 minutes into the second half, capitalizing on a rebound.
“My belief is that the forwards of Milan are selfless,” stated Conceicao. “That’s perfectly fine, I appreciate having players like that. However, there are instances when they need to simplify their approach. When it comes to scoring goals, they need to be more selfish. A winger should take on their opponents one-on-one. Sometimes, we search for complicated solutions, and I don’t approve of that. Football is a simple game.” When questioned about the necessity for more regulations and discipline within the team, the Milan coach openly admitted his preference for a well-organized environment. “This has been my way of doing things for many years,” he explained. “It’s not a matter of being forced to do it here. For me, it’s about the basics: schedules, training, and fully immersing oneself in the work day by day. “If I arrived halfway through the season, it means something was not right, and we must take complete responsibility. If we enforce strictness and high demands outside the game, then we will do the same during the game.” On Tuesday, Milan will travel to Como, currently in 16th place, before their visit to Juventus next Saturday.
Following that, they will aim to continue their four-game winning streak in the Champions League when they host Girona on January 22nd.
