GdS: ‘Conceicao’s plans’ – the mission to arrive at the Coppa Italia final in the best way

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·1 May 2025

GdS: ‘Conceicao’s plans’ – the mission to arrive at the Coppa Italia final in the best way

AC Milan head coach Sergio Conceicao knows that the season is now geared around one game, and he is doing his best to prepare for it correctly.

As La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) writes this morning, May has arrived and it is the month in which Milan will play for their second trophy of the season. The first was in January, a comeback in the Supercoppa Italiana against Inter, and what has happened in between almost doesn’t matter.

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History matters, as the highly charged Milan know well. Not since 2007-08 have the Rossoneri lifted two trophies to the sky in the same season, which back then was the European Super Cup against Sevilla and the Club World Cup against Boca Juniors, with Carlo Ancelotti on the bench.

Conceiçao wants to try to repeat that feat. He has a very different history than Carletto, and yet could enter with him into the same elite group of double-winning coaches.

The quest for 13

Personally, Conceicao is aiming for number 13. In his career he won 11 trophies with Porto (three league titles, as many Portuguese Super Cups, the national cup four times and the League Cup once) and then the Supercoppa with the Rossoneri.

He beat Juve in the semi-final and was victorious in the derby that awarded the title: both were comebacks, one of the specialties of Conceiçao’s Milan. In the league he has won 13 points from losing positions, the last being a 2-2 draw against Fiorentina from two goals down.

Returning to the Supercoppa, the party in the dressing room in Saudi Arabia is famous, with the music turned up and the coach with the trophy in his hand and a cigar in his mouth. It was a show directed by the team, who knew his way of celebrating and also requested it in the Riyadh stadium.

Sergio is not the type to take centre stage on his own accord: on the contrary, even after the last Coppa Italia derby, he let only the group of players receive the applause of the fans.

The remaining objective

That derby win was a shot of enthusiasm in view of the final in Rome, to be fuelled also with the next two league games: Monday in Genoa and Friday at San Siro against Bologna, the same opponent as the cup final.

The objective is obvious: from Rome is the road that leads to Europe, given winning the final would secure a Europa League spot. By that date he could have the entire group available, and in the meantime he will manage his forces in the league.

Against Venezia, Santiago Gimenez returned to scoring and thanks to Luka Jovic’s back discomfort he will be able to have more playing time in the next few games, a resource not to be squandered. Jovic appreciates having a coach who has spoken to him sincerely and decided to bet on him.

Conceiçao gets back the experience of Kyle Walker, who returned last Sunday in place of the aching Alex Jimenez (just fatigue, he is already training with the squad). For the grand finale, Sergio is looking for the best from Theo Hernandez and Rafael Leao, both more involved in the last games.

The future

The team are following Conceicao, precious allies in his quest to write more pages in the history of the Rossoneri and maybe even their own. Sergio might want to add a new chapter: success in the Coppa Italia would lead the club to more careful evaluations.

The possibility that Conceiçao extends his experience with Milan has never been ruled out a priori, if anything accompanied by the hypothesis of a new course with the leadership entrusted to an Italian director and coach.

The club and the ex-Porto boss are bound by a contract until the summer of 2026, but a clause allows both parties to free themselves one season in advance. It can be used by the club, who would then have more budget to allocate to a new coach.

However, it can be used by Conceiçao himself, who is inevitably tired at the end of a stressful season as we revealed last night. “At the end of the year I will also say what I want,” the coach recent said. Today there is only one desire, the Coppa Italia.