AC Milan manager Paulo Fonseca is already plotting for the upcoming Champions League clash with Liverpool, as the Reds recover from their first defeat of the season.
Liverpool just faced its first setback under Arne Slot this Saturday, with Callum Hudson-Odoi’s goal sealing a win for the opposition at Anfield. While Slot will undoubtedly be eager to steer Liverpool back to winning ways in the Premier League, there’s a European encounter that demands attention first.
The Reds are gearing up for their Champions League kick-off on Tuesday against the Italian heavyweights AC Milan. The Rossoneri’s head honcho Fonseca has let slip that preparations for the showdown with Liverpool are underway.
Post their 4-0 triumph over Venezia, Fonseca admitted: “I have to be honest, I already started thinking about both games against Liverpool and Inter. I realize the importance of the derby, Liverpool will be very difficult, but I cannot deny I have already started studying Inter too. I know what it means to the fans, we are working to have good performances in both matches.”
Milan’s recent victory over Venezia, where Christian Pulisic scored and assisted, marked their first win of the season after draws with Lazio and Torino and a defeat by Parma the previous month. And Fonseca has set his sights on more growth from his squad, expressing his views clearly.
“Our season already started four rounds ago,” he said. “We dropped points and need to recover lost ground, but it was important to win and to win like this. It gives the players confidence to keep growing.”
He emphasized the significance of the team’s mentality in addition to their tactical approach, adding: “We can talk about tactics and technique, but energy and attitude are very important for a team that wants to play this type of football. The work done on the pitch was important, but so was studying videos, having conversations in the locker room, it was all important.”
On the opposing side, Liverpool’s head coach Slot didn’t mince words when criticizing his team’s lackluster display against Forest. “The result frustrates the most, and we cannot be happy about how the game went,” he said during the post-match press conference. “It was a stop-start game and we hardly created any chances.”
With self-reflection, Slot noted the work ahead for the Reds: “We only have to look at ourselves; we have to be better. Far too many times, we lost the ball around the area. It was not good enough. We have to be better with the ball.”
Highlighting execution issues, Slot continued: “Our decisions and execution wasn’t good enough. In general, we defended quite well, but the two fast players [Hudson-Odoi and Anthony Elanga] came on and made it difficult. We took a lot of risks and in the end it was a very good goal.”
