Allegri: “I’m very enthusiastic, the result is the most important thing, we have to be a united group, Maignan is the Captain, Leão will have a great season, Modrić will arrive in August” | OneFootball

Massimiliano Allegri during a press conference at Casa Milan on July 7, 2025. (@acmilan.com)

Massimiliano Allegri was presented to the press today at Casa Milan and he spoke about his vision for his new side.

15 years after the first time – Allegri is once again conducting training sessions at Milanello as the new head coach.

Today (Monday) the pre-season training officially began and Max sat alongside director of sport Igli Tare at Casa Milan today to face the press.

“I just want to do a quick introduction. It’s nice to be here in front of you and let’s start this new adventure today where we hopefully will have great satisfaction,” Allegri said before the questions.

It was the 30th of May that there was the official announcement of your return to Milan. Since then, have you what have you done? Have you galvanized the determination? Have you focused yourself on everything you want to do?“Since we’ve came back, we’ve started to work with the directors, with all the components of the club to have results, good results at the end of the season. I think we have to be united as a group where we all go in one direction. We have to be professional. We have to be responsible. It’s a very important club, Milan. very big club. We’ve only just begun. I share I share everything Tare says about the club and we share the same dynamic. We’re going to evaluate everything. We’ve had the first training sessions and today there will be an open training session. It’s a fantastic adventure. I’m very happy. I’m very enthusiastic. I’m really glad to have returned to Milan where there were people lots of people that were here in my first spell and now there are some new people. I’m very stimulated and motivated. It’s great to meet new people and it’s great to work together.”

Massimiliano Allegri during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

Welcome back, Allegri. 15 years later, a lot has changed at Milan. You’ve changed in the last 15 years and you’ve won more trophies than Milan have. Is this the objective? Is this the target – to bring Milan back to the top to winning the Scudetto? And also, you seemed quite emotional when you came back…“It’s not like I have won more than Milan in these 15 years. I’ve had the luck to work for Milan for 4 years. I remember President Silvio Berlusconi and Adriano Galliani and we were in a condition to be able to win things thanks to the club and the players I worked with, and they gave me a Scudetto. Then I went to Juventus. And I’d actually like to take this opportunity now to thank Juventus for eight years I spent with them, the people I worked with at Juventus for eight years who supported me every day. The president Andrea Agnelli, I had eight years with Agnelli and I have a very close contact with him, I’ve got a very good relationship with him. Having said this, I will try everything to put the players in condition to give everyone lots of satisfaction, joy and important victories here at Milan. But it all comes from the club. The club has to be united. Everyone has to be supported. And I’m convinced that the club will support me and we’ll be a unified block. The Milan squad is a very good squad. I’m now getting to know the players and there are good players. The club and the director are looking at all the various angles and situations. The important thing is to be in the best conditions possible on the 31st of August. We have to start working. As I always say – in the first six months we need to create the basis and the foundations in order to arrive in March, April and May in the best conditions. The season is decided in March, April and May. We have a game in the Coppa Italia in August first of all and that’s where we start.”

I wanted to ask at the end of the season, will you be would you be happy if…“I don’t want to start with what we will feel like at the end of the season. We’ve only just started. I don’t want to start by talking about these things. I think we have to be very enthusiastic and show lots of passion. We have to be responsible. We have to be determined and and we have to put down the foundation to be ready in March to make things happen and to hit our objectives. The first objective, I think the most important or the first important objective, is that we have to play in the Champions League. That’s the first objective. A club like Milan has to play like have to play in the Champions League. In March we have to be in the Champions League positions.”

Rafael Leão during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

I know you watched Milan’s matches last year. How can you explain last season’s eighth place finish even though the squad is good? What could you give to this Milan to improve that eighth place finish of last season?“It’s difficult to say, it’s difficult to say in football. Let me give an example. I watched Serie B last season and Spezia made the playoffs last season with one extra player, when the season before that they were playing the playout. There’s no explanation really. You have to work hard. What happened to Milan? I don’t know. I’m not able to say what happened last season to comment on it. I think it would be a lack of respect. I wasn’t working with Milan last season. I watched some matches though and I enjoyed some of them. Watching football is my passion, it’s not just my job. This season is a new season. We have to concentrate on this. Last season Milan won a trophy and they got to the final of the Coppa Italia. They had some great performances, some good matches in one-off matches. They were very good. I have to take the positives of last season. And when you take the positives, when the results go well, you know that that’s evidence that there’s a good team there. Now, I have to make them better. I have to get the best out of them. We have to work together with the players and the staff, with Everyone who plays part of our training centre, who works at our training centre Milanello. We have to get the best out of the team because when you’re at Milan, a big club like Milan, you have to be ambitious to get the best out of the team and never settle. But to do this, you have to be dedicated in your work day by day and you have to try in a league above all, where it’s not a one-off match. You have to cruise along smoothly. You have to travel at a certain speed. You have to reach a certain number of points. If you want to be in certain places in the table, you have to score a certain number of goals, concede fewer goals. The Italian league is very difficult. When I was a child, I was taught it, and very little’s changed since then.”

In your first year, you arrived early on and won the Scudetto? I want to know what your objective is for this spell – is it to get the next league title which brings the second star?“It’s not about winning matches by one goal. It’s about working well. It’s about bringing Milan, taking Milan back into Europe. Above all the Champions League. Everyone has to have that target in mind. We have to get there. We can only get there with work, with everyday work, with training. Everyone, everyone, me included. Me first of all, we have to work hard every day and I believe in it.”

How have the last few months been from your personal point of view? We read that you were you were the manager that all of the clubs in Serie A were looking for: Inter were linked with you, Napoli were linked with you, Italy national team were linked with you. But you chose Milan. Why?“I chose Milan because I’ve got a real affection for Milan. It’s where I won my first Scudetto. As Tare said, when I met him and Furlani, it was a really enthusiastic and positive meeting. We decided to start this adventure together. I’m very happy and enthusiastic about this choice.”

Matteo Gabbia during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

We’re waiting for the official move of Theo Hernández. But there’s a lot of talk about Dušan Vlahović. It could be interesting name. I’d like to know what your comments are on that…“For the transfer market, I’ve got Tare here and he is he is monitoring everything. We will talk every day. We will look at what the opportunities are every day. Regarding exits and departures – they were all agreed by everybody, the club and I. As of today, I’ve got 25 players. I’m very happy with them. Some are out injured. But I think we have to do things slowly and gradually. We have to work hard. On the 17th of August, I repeat, we’ve got a Coppa Italia match. It’s an important starting point because it’s a match. It’s a one-off match. It’s a knockout match.”

Last year Napoli is an interesting example of a team without European football who were able to win the league. You’ve just arrived. Have you got in mind something like Napoli last year in the sense that no European football could help with the Scudetto race? Do you think Milan can do what Napoli did?“All I can say is that when you work at Milan, you have to be ambitious and you have to aim to get the best results possible. And to do so, as I said before, you have to work hard and believe that you can get the best results possible. If we’re good, if in March we’re in the Champions League places or the higher places in the league table, then we can work hard and we can think about it. But I’m not going to say now that we’re going to win the league, we’re going to win this, we’re going to win that. That’s not useful to say that now. What’s more important is to be professional and determined and well prepared. We have to get the results we need with hard work, passion and be responsible. Every one of us within this club has to have it.”

You’re being a bit defensive on certain answers. I’d like to ask something…“I’m not. Are you saying I’m being defensive with my answers? Let’s not start saying that I’m a defensive manager [laughs]!”

Will you play a 4-3-3?“First of all, I hope to set my team up well. That’s the main thing.”

Is Maignan captain for next season with Leão the vice-captain?“Mike has decided to stay and he is the captain of the team. He is an international player. He’s important. He’s one of the best goalkeepers in Europe. And the club have done very well to convince him to stay. Rafa is an extraordinary player and he will have a great season.”

Mike Maignan during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

Let’s imagine this 4-3-3 midfield, the three midfielders. Who are these midfielders? Where would Modrić play? As a mezz’ala, regista in front of the defence?“Well we’re waiting for Luka to arrive because he’s still playing. He’ll come here in August. He’s a very good player. We don’t need to introduce him because everyone knows how good he is. We have Ricci in midfield,Modrić when he arrives. We have Loftus-Cheek who I think is a very good important player – when he first joined, he scored 12 goals. We have Fofana, we have Bondo, and we have Musah. We’ve got very good players in midfield. We’ll play with three midfielders, but depending on their characteristics, we’ll decide who we select. It depends on the players and who’s available and how we will use them in the field. We’ll try and get the best out of them and we’ll hope to get the best out of them.”

You spoke about the importance of the club and the support you’re receiving from the club. Do you think the arrival of a man like Tare is important and that there wasn’t a man like him last season?“Regarding what happened up until one month ago? I don’t know. I can’t tell you. I can only tell you what I’ve discovered since arriving. Everyone knows their role which is important. Tare is a bonus for the club. It’s important that we’re all going in the same direction because this block, this group, which we must have from the owner down to the people who work in the dressing room, the physiotherapists, everyone working together for Milan… we have to be a united group to get the players in the best conditions possible, to get them in the best condition to win matches.”

You spoke about all the components: players, directors and owners. You are starting with fans who were a little bit disappointed as shown in the last match of last season. The fans sent a message. Can you can you give a message to the fans? They want this to be a season of rebirth for Milan. Have you got any comments on that?“Regarding the owners, I met them and we had a nice pleasant lunch together which I enjoyed. As for the fans – I repeat that what we have to do is work well every day after day. The only thing to regain the fans respect is to is to work well responsibly and professionally and try and get the results we have to get because they’re the most important thing in football. And the fans have to give us a hand. The fans have to help us because we all need them. Absolutely. We will need the fans.”

Massimiliano Allegri during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

You said Scudetti are won by winning matches in which you play badly. And someone else once said it’s important to say thank you to the people that took a player, a boy, and turned me into a man. That was Dušan Vlahović who said that…I have a good relationship with Vlahović. He arrived young from Florentina and I saw him develop well. As for the other quote – I don’t like statistics and numbers, but some numbers you can’t avoid. Some statistics in the last 16 seasons, there’s only one year when the Scudetto was not won by the team with the best defence. I think that was at Juventus when they conceded 43 goals. Goal difference is very important: if you score a lot but concede lots, you won’t do very well.”

You spoke about Leão and said you believe he’ll have a great season. Where do you get that belief from? Every new manager at Milan has said that Rafael will have a great season, and will be the best player in the world. Do you think you can bring the best out of him?“I hope so. I’m convinced because he’s getting to an age now where he’s maturing as a player. Between 27 and 30 is when the players reach their peak. Rafa is like that and I think he feels more responsibility. We’ve spoken. I think everything’s in place for Rafa to do very well.”

Rafael Leão during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

How has Max Allegri changed in these years away from Milan?“I saw a photo when I was with Milan the first time – I had hair [laughs]. I’ve changed a lot. It’s normal. I’ve had experiences. I’ve gained experience. It’s a question of what you’ve done, it’s a question of experience. In in general, in life, it depends on your experiences. I’ll be 58 in a month. I’ll be 58-years-old. In respect to my first Milan, in respect to when I started, I’m completely different. In my first four years with Milan and my eight with Juventus, let’s say I was very lucky because four years with Milan taught me a lot and my eight years with Juventus taught me other things. A lot but other things. Therefore, this mix of two clubs, the two clubs gave me a lot of experience and I will keep that with me. I use that. I want to add though that I don’t think you ever stop learning. There’s always the possibility to improve. Everyone can improve. And I think it’s important to say that you shouldn’t just try and maintain your level. You improve or you get worse. You don’t maintain your level. The day that you stop improving is the day to stop.”

The word Scudetto – is that an obligation for you, an obsession for you, an objective for you and this team? Because Inter won the second star in the derby the season before last and that obviously was a big disappointment for Milan… Maybe we’ll chat about it at the end of the transfer market in the end of August. But can you talk about that?“Saying that we’re aiming for the Scudetto is something that you [the press] can say, and you can write that. But when a season starts, if a club is a big club like Milan, then you have to have high objectives. Then, the pitch and the action on the pitch will tell us what is realistic. It’s 38 matches – every Sunday. Every day. Every day you have to work hard because the matches in the Italian league are very difficult. And every Sunday you have to play for three points to get to a certain level of points which will put you in a good position in the table. But we can talk about this in March. Until March, you have to build the base, the foundation to be in good condition, the last the last two months are the most important.”

Christian Pulisic during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

How have you found Zlatan Ibrahimović who was your player? And have you spoken to Theo asking him to change ideas?“I haven’t seen Zlatan yet. We were in touch though when it was official that I was coming back. He was a player that with others gave me the Scudetto, my first Scudetto. But now he’s starting a new career. He’s a director as Tare and Furlani said. He has to be an example. The professionalism of Zlatan has to be an example to all the players. Theo has made a different choice. He is a great player. He’s made his choice and I wish him all the best.”

In this conference you’ve spoken about responsibility, professionalism, a compact and united group… How important will it be to work on the mindset, the heads, of these players? Because they appeared quite fragile last season they didn’t seem particularly determined and didn’t seem able to focus on the objectives, and there were failures…“I can’t judge last season. I am only able to talk from what happens now and we will try and get the team in a great condition straight away. We have to become a team. We’ll become a team. As soon as we become a team, we’ll be able to have positive results. The players have been attentive to me; they’ve made themselves available and listened and now we have to show what we can do with the ball. That’s the hardest thing. Today is the first training session and I have got faith. I repeat – what happened last season or in the years before that – is the past. I have to take the best of last year. As I said to the club – we don’t need a revolution. Milan doesn’t require a revolution. We have to work responsibly and in order. And from now until the 31st of August, Tare will be working hard for the team.”

Fans during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

Last season you watched a lot of Milan but also other teams. Thiago Silva said that you gave him advice for his team on how to beat Inter in at the Club World Cup, but what teams do you fear next season?“Thiago Silva called me because we’re in touch and we speak every now and then. I asked him: ‘What are you doing? Are you a director’ and he said: ‘No, I am still playing’. And I said: ‘Really?’, and then we had a good laugh… As for the clubs I’m worried about next season -the teams that are always dangerous are Napoli – they are the favourites to win the league because when you win the league, you’re normally the favorite – Inter, Juventus, Atalanta, Roma, Lazio… There are normally 7-8 teams that you have to respect and to arrive in the Top 4 is not easy.”

You spoke about the statistics, about how to get good results and about not conceding too many goals and conceding few goals. In the last few years, Milan have had problems defending. Last season, it appeared as though they started every match a goal down. At this moment, who are the fullbacks you expect to work with? Some have left, some have renewed their contracts. Tell us about the fullbacks and the central defenders as well. What do you expect from the central defenders? Would you like someone a bit younger? Are you looking for someone fresher?“I’m not speaking about the transfer market because Tare taking care of it and doing very well. As for the fullbacks – we have Jiménez who can play fullback, Bartesaghi who’s a very interesting young player and we’re working with them. We’ve got a time to sort out the fullbacks and to sort everything out. In central defence, we’ve got four central defenders with different characteristics who have got margins of improvement: Pavlović is a player who has got good margins of improvement. Tomori, Thiaw and Gabbia who is an example to everyone. And I’m happy with everyone we’ve got.”

Davide Bartesaghi and Ruben Loftus-Cheek during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

A year ago, it seemed like the one-goal victory was out of fashion, but perhaps it’s changed and it’s back to fashion. Is this a bit of a revenge for you to come back to Milan after the way you exited your previous club and the way people didn’t appreciate what you did at Juventus? And did you have other offers?“There’s no revenge. I can only be positive and thank Juventus. We had eight great years together. I said before I am really grateful to everyone I worked with at Juventus. No revenge. As for the other question, the most important offer was from Milan. That was the most important offer I had. I’m very happy and enthusiastic about being back here. Milan is a charming club that really appeals to me.”

Do you want Milan to dominate matches and to dominate the play? And I want to ask about Vlahović and also free kicks. Milan have struggled with free kicks in the last few years – are you interested in a free kick taker?“I believe that in football – when you have the ball, you have to attack well and score goals. when you don’t have the ball, you have to defend and not concede. Simple. Then there’s different styles of defending, different ways of attacking. But I think there are only two phases in football. When you’ve got the ball, attack and be decisive. When you don’t have it then defend and don’t concede goals.”

Álex Jiménez during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

As soon as you entered the press room, there was a happy atmosphere, a cheerful atmosphere that really struck me. Everyone was ‘Allegri’ which is Italian for cheerful. How important is this cheerfulness for you in the dressing room? Do you think the players will be a bit more cheerful this year?“I think we need to have fun with determination. Have fun winning and being determined. That’s the mix. We have a wonderful job, but like all jobs, it needs to be done with passion. And this leads you doing things and overcoming obstacles. But to do that, you need to be passionate about your job. And we have a wonderful job. We do it. We try to have fun. When I go back to Milanello in the morning, I train. We play with great passion and we realize how lucky we are to have our job.”

I don’t really understand horse racing like you do, but you said sometimes you have to give the ball to the best player and he’ll take care of business. Is that how you see Leão?“Rafa has got great characteristics. Like all the other players though: Rafa for his characteristics or Loftus-Cheek for his characteristics or Ricci, Tomori or Jiménez – I have to put them in the best condition to show what they can do. I have to put them in a condition to show their best.”

Massimiliano Allegri during training at Milanello. (@acmilan.com)

You left Milan in your last match against Sassuolo at the Mapei Stadium. You had Milan in the first spell always finishing in the top 3 and with Juventus you always arrived very high in the table…“Well what happened last season with Milan – I can’t talk about that. It’s just chat. What I can say, what I am saying, what I’m repeating – is that it’s a new season starting today. We’ve got objectives. We’ve got targets to hit from the 17th of August, the Coppa Italia. Then we’ll have the league. And to get the right results and to be consistent in the league, we have to work every day, and we have to work hard. That’s the only way you can be consistent in the league. A one-off match, the Coppa, a knockout match, a semi-final or final is very different to the league and I want the players to understand that. And I think everyone who works with us, the players and the staff will understand that, because from the physios, kit men and chefs to the players – we have to be focused to hit our objectives.”

Max, your best result in your career wasn’t the Scudetto, but it was the two Champions League finals that you reached, because not many get to two finals in in three years and you did that with Juventus. As Galliani said – even if you don’t win the Champions League final, it’s still important to get there. And now some of the fans are saying that with Allegri we won’t play exciting football. Are you a bit tired of people criticizing your style saying that it isn’t very exciting?“No, I’m not tired. I enjoy people talking about these things, analysing my style of play, but for me, it’s the result that’s most important. If you win, you’re a very good manager. If you lose… Let me give you an example: When Cristiano Ronaldo scored the overhead goal against Juventus in Torino – nobody remembered the cross. Football is art. The players are artists with their feet and with their heads and the fans at the stadium love to watch artistic moments, creative moments. But it’s a team sport as well, which I agree with people that say that. But if two or three players can’t pass properly, if two or three passes break down, the team move is a failure. So, we have to put the players in position to be able to do the basics and play skilfully well.”