AC Milan head coach Paulo Fonseca praised the resilience that his side showed as they defended with 10 men for over 60 minutes to earn a 1-0 win over Udinese.
Samuel Chukwueze got the decisive goal in the 13th minute but the scoreline doesn’t even begin to tell the picture, with Milan on the end of what they felt was a harsh refereeing decision when Tijjani Reijnders was sent off just before the half-hour mark.
What followed was a heroic defensive performance from the players that remained including some tireless running from the front, and the end result was a very hard fought clean sheet. A late offside call also ruled out a Udinese equaliser in the 95th minute, so it really was a game of margins.
Fonseca spoke to DAZN after the game to give his assessments on what was a night full of drama but one in which the end result was three precious points, and MilanNews relayed his comments.
How do you assess the game?
“The match had two parts: one part, until the 30th minute when we got the red card and we played 30 minutes of great character. We were close to what I want from this Milan. After the red card it was a match of team spirit. We suffered together and if anyone has doubts about the team’s unity, today we showed unity and team spirit.
“And this is the most important thing. I am very satisfied and the players who came on were decisive, also working for the team. True, we suffered but against a team like Udinese, who are good and make a lot of crosses, it is normal to suffer. I am very satisfied.”
Was it important to show this attitude?
“Here at Milan what I’ve been looking for since day one is a team that works together, that suffers together. A team that defends together. For this I’m very satisfied. This is the spirit we want: team spirit. Everyone has sacrificed themselves.”
The injury time at the end was long and stressful…
“If we had conceded a draw it would have been an injustice. For how we played, for the opportunities we created. It would have been an injustice not to win the match, because the boys deserved the three points.”
You brought Noah Okafor off, because of Christian Pulisic’s work rate?
“I have to say one thing: it was very difficult to make choices because Okafor was playing a great game, but he understood. Christian played a fantastic game, this is the spirit we must always have.”
