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Milan, Gattuso: 'We don't talk about Higuain anymore; Leonardo and Maldini add value'

Milan, Gattuso: 'We don't talk about Higuain anymore; Leonardo and Maldini add value'

AC Milan are preparing to face Empoli on Friday in Serie A; ahead of their Coppa Italia semi-final first leg next Tuesday against Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico. Speaking ahead of the Empoli match, Milan head coach Gennaro Gattuso spoke to the press:

"It won’t be easy. Iachini prepares well for games and he’s not joking around. Empoli have good players and an efficient defence. They’ve changed their tactical set-up and games like these determine how much we’ve grown.

“We have three games in eight days, a factor not to be underestimated, but it is useless to think beyond tomorrow’s game. We’re at a crossroads in the season and we must find the consistency that we haven’t shown up to now.

“Paqueta often goes forward from his position and plays as a No 10. He can fulfil any role. Calhanoglu? I always look for human relationships, not just with Calhanoglu, even if Hakan knows he hasn’t been great on a technical level. I reserve my attention especially on those who are seeing very little game time. This is a Milan side for everyone, not just Piatek or an individual, the directors or Gattuso.

“We’re all tied to results and we all have to think day by day, committing ourselves when called up on and also taking the right moments of rest.

“We have to improve but there are times like against Atalanta, when you can suffer at the hands of your opponents’ strength and must wait for the right moment to hurt them.

"We're not talking about Higuain anymore, we're talking about who's there, it's everybody's Milan, at the moment we have an attacker who is valuing everything that comes to him but the merits are for everyone. the team is young, it can still grow a lot, the important thing is that there is the desire, the crossroads are to give continuity to what we are doing, it is the step we must overcome.

"At this moment Paolo, Leo and Gazidis are an added value: since I started this job, the coaching is difficult to talk with presidents and owners, I have a comparison on everything. Maldini tells the truth, there are so many things I do not share with them as they do not share so many things with me, but we work together, we have to think about the club, I do not think about my ego, they do not think about them, we just have to get this structure to the maximum, which has been struggling for some years. always positive and they were good at making me grow.

"​We are thinking about Empoli, then we will think about Lazio and Sassuolo, we must be able to find the maximum concentration, prepare it, well, I want to see the same attitude of the first minutes with Cagliari."


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