Sergio Conceicao acknowledged that he is still attempting to “discover the right equilibrium” after deploying all four of AC Milan’s attackers in their 1-0 loss against Feyenoord. In order to progress to the last 16 of the Champions League, Milan will now have to overturn their deficit in the first leg at San Siro.
Igor Paixao took advantage of a mistake by Mike Maignan as the goalkeeper let in his shot from a difficult angle in the third minute. This proved to be the winning goal for Feyenoord, who defied the odds after sacking head coach Brian Priske on Monday. All four of Santiago Gimenez, Joao Felix, Rafael Leao and Christian Pulisic were included in Milan’s front line on Wednesday, but they struggled to create significant chances.
In the first half, the quartet only managed three shots worth 0.19 expected goals (xG), and had just 14 touches in the opposition’s box. By the end of the game, they had an xG of 0.57, only slightly less than Feyenoord’s 0.58, but they were unable to truly trouble Timon Wellenreuther. Tijjani Reijnders came closest, shooting just over the crossbar. “We approached this game with the same mentality as we would a Champions League Final,” Conceicao informed Sky Sport Italia. “I am aware of the hard work I put in to reach this point. I have been a player and a coach for 14 years. I have the same level of respect for lower league and Champions League opponents. “Everyone has the benefit of hindsight and can analyse things perfectly. This was my plan before the game. I understand that people are curious about the four attackers, but we also had seven other players. It is my responsibility to find the right balance in the team, and I will continue to work on that.”
Milan have not won any of their last 12 away games in the knockout stages of the Champions League (drawn four, lost eight), and have failed to score in eight of those matches. In fact, they have lost 44% of their away games in all competitions this season (P16 W7 D2 L7), their worst away record since 2013-14 (46%). Milan will be playing at home in the second leg of their play-off on Tuesday, and Conceicao is anticipating a much improved performance. “You win games by being dominant, aggressive, and Feyenoord had all of those elements tonight,” Conceicao stated. “We should have done better, we were aware that it would be a heated atmosphere, and they always perform better at home. This is the Champions League, and this atmosphere should give us more motivation, not less.
“Tijji Reijnders had a chance immediately, and then we conceded a goal due to a mistake that can happen in football, but we had opportunities to equalise and should have done better. The tie is not over yet, it is still wide open for the second leg, and we definitely need to respond differently on Tuesday. “We all need to give a little more, starting with myself, and raise our level, which will make games easier. I have a squad with technical ability, but we must also bring in other important characteristics, otherwise it will be a challenge. “It is not easy to change things, but it is not impossible. We are here to make the final four months of the season different from the six that came before.”
