To say that the atmosphere has been tense at Milanello recently would be an understatement. Allegations leaked from Sergio Conceicao’s entourage, as such, didn’t make things better yesterday and resulted in an impromptu confrontation.
As reported by today’s edition of Gazzetta dello Sport (see photo below), Conceicao’s spokesperson took matters into his own hands, forwarding the manager’s supposed thoughts – in detail – to the press. Among other things, the former Porto man has allegedly not been happy with the athletic preparation of the team.
Above all, however, the lack of a clear project and support from the management – in addition to Gerry Cardinale’s absence during all this time – has frustrated him. The words shook the Rossoneri environment and it had to be addressed in the evening.
Conceicao denies everything
Conceicao immediately hit back at his own communications staff, denying everything said with determination: certain thoughts do not belong to him and are absolutely distant from reality. As he made clear, if he has something to say, he will say it himself and not through someone else.
“I suffer a lot for Milan’s current situation but nothing that has been reported about me is true. The club is always present, I know that the club is with me,” Conceicao told the pink newspaper. Indeed, he strongly denied the idea of ‘feeling alone’.
He speaks every day with technical director Geoffrey Moncada, an almost constant presence on the pitch, and with Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He did it yesterday too. In fact, it was Ibrahimovic that spoke to the squad recently to reinforce the coach’s position, siding with the latter.
There were moments of tension between Sergio and the players, as always happens and even more so in difficult times. However, when it was necessary to call the players to their responsibilities, Conceicao did it publicly. In short, it’s no secret that he’s disappointed.
The lack of character, which is so important for Conceicao’s game, was certainly highlighted in the Champions League: lost due to the unpardonable naivety of Theo Hernandez. Not to mention Mike Maignan’s howler in the first leg, and Yunus Musah’s red card against Dinamo Zagreb.
Confrontation at Milanello
After the misunderstanding with the spokesperson, Conceicao had a confrontation with the club yesterday evening to clarify the episode, and then relied on the club’s press office. Today, he will also speak to the media for the Lecce-Milan press conference.
It’s an opportunity to reiterate his true thoughts and to publicly correct yesterday’s misunderstanding. Oh, and then there is a match to talk about: Milan will have only one result available. Win to try to reach the European competitions.
A victory would allow him to catch his breath and have another week of training to prepare for the next match. Otherwise, there will be other words: will the club and coach say goodbye?
