Pioli admits Milan have ‘no excuses’ for abject Sassuolo display: “Let me tell our fans something” | OneFootball

Stefano Pioli has admitted there are no excuses for the performance that his AC Milan side showed against Sassuolo in this afternoon’s 3-1 defeat.

It was an afternoon to forget for the Rossoneri as they took an early lead through Alessio Romagnoli’s header but quickly conceded an equaliser to Gianluca Scamacca who scored with a fantastic shot from distance, and trailed at the break due to an own-goal from Simon Kjaer.

Things went from bad to worse after the break as there were to be no heroics, with Domenico Berardi making it 3-1 before Romagnoli saw red for what the referee adjudged to be a last-man challenge on Defrel, and that essentially condemned Milan to their second straight league defeat.

Pioli spoke to DAZN after the game and was given a grilling about the team’s performance, with his comments transcribed by MilanNews.

After Fiorentina there were still errors from individuals: “I explain that we lacked lucidity. We missed too many situations, especially in the opposing area. We went in so many times and we missed the last step. We had to manage the lead better, the minutes after the goal are important. We made a mistake. If we conceded 7 goals in two games, something went wrong.”

Did the team play sufficiently? “Sufficiency is a term that I don’t like, mentally we weren’t so clear in our choices and when we are not clear it is easier to make mistakes.”

The team suffered more than usual in one-on-one situations at the back: “Our defensive phase foresees these situations, in previous matches we have won them and today we have lost them. It is never the responsibility of a single department. In some situations, more attention was needed in order not to concede the third goal in order to stay in the game until the end.”

On Florenzi and his role: “He is a fantastic guy who makes himself available. As soon as I arrived I used it higher. After 2-3 games he approached me to say, always with the utmost respect: ‘Mister, when do you let me play in my role?’. I think today he controlled Raspadori well, he is growing in condition and is an important player.”

What reaction do you expect and what faces did you see? “Right faces after two defeats. We remembered that we didn’t come from a win. I don’t think the approach was wrong. We had to be better at management. We are aware of our qualities and defects, we will have to work to improve. In the last few games we have done a little less.”

Is it the toll you pay for the double commitment? “We have no excuses, we want to face these double commitments. Maybe go through in the Champions League. Today I fielded 5 different players than in Madrid but we were not lucid in our choices against a quick, fast and technical opponent. Let me tell our fans something: they were in the game until the end despite the difficulties. Let’s continue so that together we are stronger.”