This Juventus-Milan is not just a match, it is the parable of Stefano Pioli’s fifth season on the Devil’s bench: a group ago he and his boys welcomed the Bianconeri to San Siro as solitary league leaders; the 5-1 in the September derby seemed like a blow that was overcome thanks to the continuity of results that had launched Milan to the top of the table, the Champions League round of 16 was still well within reach. A whole different movie. Today Milan is out of the cups, hurt by the elimination in the Europa League with Roma and by yet another lost derby, the one that delivered the scudetto and star to Inter, 17 points away. Pioli lost contact with his bench just when he seemed to be making a big comeback: tomorrow, in the standings, it will be third against second, but above all it will be the first stage of the long farewell that will take place at the end of the championship. “They were ten delicate days, difficult for everyone, and that’s why we have to win again tomorrow,” explains Pioli. Then he zooms in on his personal moment: “Have these been my most difficult days since I coached Milan? In these almost five years there has been no middle ground. Either very positive moments or very negative moments. I can’t say if this is the most negative, but it is the closest and therefore also the most painful. If I could change the outcome of the derbies I would give everything I have, but it can’t be done anymore. I for one must have broad shoulders, understand that it is part of the game and my job. We must demonstrate who we are until the end.”
leao and the others
—
At the Stadium in the middle it will be Adli’s turn: “Bennacer is not at his best and Yacine is very careful in the defensive phase, from this point of view he is the most reliable”. With Calabria and Theo disqualified, the captain’s armband will be held tight on the arm of Leao, the emblem of Milan’s lack of leadership seen in recent matches: “Rafa is experiencing it like all his teammates and like all of us – says Pioli -. It was a big pain to lose the derby and see our rivals celebrate. We just have to react with the next matches. We cannot stop at these disappointments suffered and given to the fans, we need pride and solidarity until the end. The objective is to win them all, tomorrow we will have to fight as if it were the last match. I want a concentrated Milan, to overcome an opponent who is doing well, we have to defend second place.” It’s all too easy to identify the determining factor in the Rossoneri’s current state of mind: “The exit from the Europa League and that month where we broke away from Inter were decisive. Inter is stronger, continuous, solid and we have not managed to maintain its level but we are not the only ones: for 4 years Inter have had the strongest squad and have only won two championships, we have never had the strongest team but we fought for the top and mentally we gave everything. What if there is a lack of balance? We are waiting for the end of the season and we will make all the evaluations.”
Z factor
—
Closing on Ibra: “He is always close to us and tries to give us maximum support to overcome the moment. We win together, we lose together, we suffer together. Zlatan loves Milan and will make his decisions for the good of Milan.”
