On the eve of the match against Milan, the Genoa coach Alberto Gilardino spoke at a press conference from the “Gianluca Signorini” sports center in Pegli.
How is Gudmundsson?
“We will make some assessments today. We will have the finishing touches and then we will leave for Milan. We hope and hope to recover it”.
Matturro trained with a group this week. Will he be called up? And how are the others?
“Alan has been training with the team for a few days. He has come a long way and we wanted to bring him back to the team as quickly as possible. That’s what happened. He has a great desire to get back, I have to do some evaluations for tomorrow but he has to continue his daily training routine but I hope to bring him to the bench in the next matches and maybe be able to use him.”
How many confirmations will there be and how many training changes will there be?
“Vitinha carved out a small space for himself in the last match. He too is recovering his best form and the desire is to give him some continuity in his playing time. I will have to make some assessments if Albert is not there or if I manage to recover him. There will be some confirmations. The desire is to provide continuity but at the same time there is the desire to see players who have had less playing time than others in the last period to make an evaluation together with the club for the future.”
Has there been any progress for the future?
“The situation is that we have found a verbal agreement with the club. We will see each other again in the next few days and I am happy, happy. It has always been my desire and my will. I had spoken about it together with the club in the past weeks. The will of give continuity to work together with the team and staff, the possibility of reconfirming ourselves. Now the details are missing but there was a very positive verbal agreement.”
Guidelines for the future?
“The future is called Milan because it is tomorrow’s match. I have transferred this thought to the team and it is what the boys must have in this championship finale: the desire to amaze, to play on all pitches to play matches on equal terms. Knowing that tomorrow we face a strong, talented team coached very well by Mister Pioli, Milan are second in the league and have a similar points average to when they won the championship They’re a strong team on set pieces. We know what a team we’re facing in a prestigious stadium.”
Retegui?
“For attackers, scoring is an important thing. It’s a stimulating thing in attackers. What I tell him is to stay focused on what good he is doing and what good the team needs. Then the episodes will go towards him and he will certainly return to scoring.”
You and Milan have achieved your respective objectives. How much of a difference can this make?
“Given that we are very happy to have achieved the objective set five days early. We must acknowledge the work done by the boys in this extraordinary season and give continuity from the point of view of attitude and the desire to improve in the individually, in the collective and in the desire to amaze and hold on to the result. These are important considerations to make. Milan is a team that can put everyone in difficulty at any moment of the match. We know what environment we will find but we must try to limit theirs skill and highlight their qualities when we have the ball and are in the opponent’s half of the pitch.”
You’ve tried multiple offensive pairs this season. Which do you prefer?
“I like all the solutions that we can adapt and that are in sync with the way the team behaves. Albert is more of an attacking midfielder, an attacking midfielder compared to Vitinha who is more of a second striker. Vitor arrives from an injury, he has returned , he played a good part of the game and now we will evaluate him.”
Did you believe you could score these 42 points?
“That was the dream. Starting in retreat there were some objective difficulties but little by little I always had the clear picture that this team had something strong within itself and had great human qualities that allowed us to make this important championship. We always believed in it, we always fought and this was the strength of the boys. I’m very happy.”
Is the renewal near?
“My feelings and my will have always been Genoa. In the interviews the perception was the same and from my words this will has always been perceived. And it is normal that there is this attachment to these colors and to those who gave me this possibility of embark on this path. We must give credit to the club for having believed in me and together we can continue to do an excellent job.”
The championship finale?
“We must continue to dream and improve. It must be a collective and personal input trying to score as many points as possible. We know tomorrow that it will be a difficult and demanding match as they have all been. This championship leads you to meet organized teams. You must always be on the ball the race and have great attention.”
