AC Milan are back in action at San Siro tonight against Como with one mission: win to keep the hopes of a European place alive.
As La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) writes this morning, Sergio Conceiçao doesn’t do calculations or tables, at least in front of the media. However, he wants to earn a European spot and leave the team in a better place that where he found it, which was seventh under Paulo Fonseca.
Thanks to last Saturday’s win over Lecce and Juventus’ defeat against Atalanta, the Rossoneri have reduced the gap from fourth to eight points, but there are six teams in the running for the last Champions League spot and the subsequent Europa and Conference League spots below.
It’s impossible to do calculations especially for those, like Milan, who are chasing due to three consecutive defeats against Lazio, Bologna and Lazio. If after the break and the away match against Napoli the gap to fourth is smaller, with eight matches still on the calendar, maybe the aim can change.
Being without the Champions League will be a big blow for Milan’s budget as they will lose over €60m. Being out of the other two competitions would be a step backwards, considering the last season without any European football was 2019-20 after the exclusion decided by the CAS.
Then, under Stefano Pioli, they always qualified: 2020-21 in the Europa League and then four times in a row in the Champions League. Now they risk being out of everything and for the Rossoneri brand it would not be good news, even if only the Champions League guarantees worldwide exposure.
This is why the management, yesterday represented by technical director Geoffrey Moncada, wants no one to give up, and in this respect Conceiçao and his professionalism are a guarantee. He is now used to the rumours about his future and possible replacements, even if they annoy him.
It is not so much on a personal level, but for the squad that can clearly be distracted, as he said in his pre-match press conference: “I’ve been listening to these rumours for a month and a half… I can’t control what others say. I control what happens in training.
“Sometimes it seems like there’s a lack of respect for those who work, but I know that’s football. The challenge with Fabregas? The motivation for me comes from winning the game, not from challenging a young and good coach. In Serie A all the matches are difficult.
In the first leg against Como, Conceiçao obtained his first victory in Serie A as a coach and hopes for another satisfaction today. For him and Milan, remaining without Europe is not an option.
