AC Milan manager Stefano Pioli has praised his side’s mentality as they maintained their five-point lead over the division this weekend, but admits being warned that Juventus, Napoli and Inter are coming.
The Rossoneri maintained their unbeaten record in the division thus far by beating Sampdoria 2-1 yesterday, and their manager has moved to praise his side’s character as they refused to get ahead of themselves.
It is easy for the inexperienced to pressure themselves with expectation when sitting pretty above their rivals in the division, but it is very much early days, and they wont be able to hold onto this sort of form throughout the campaign.
Their manager insists that his players are impressing him however.
“It’s a group that takes advantage of every situation, even the negative ones, to show the value they have,” Piolo said after their win over Sampdoria (as translated by Gianluca Di Marzio).
“The race? I thought that with that goal we had closed the match. The goal we allowed made things complicated for us. But we were able to bring the result home. These matches, when Europa League arrives, are the most difficult.”
“The players’ maturity surprises me. We are not celebrating too much, it’s useless to think of the past or future. We live in the moment with satisfaction. We all know how much Zlatan has given us. We know that our work is deep. We want to show that we are a great team. We must be more attentive on set pieces. We like to play at a high rhythm.”
Pioli adds that he is being told that the top teams are coming now, but he is just concentrating on his own side at present.
He continued: “They tell us that the strong teams are arriving: Inter, Juve and Napoli are the favourites. We must continue to work like this. I have an ongoing relationship with the club, with a lot of sharing. I am concentrated on improving the players I have.”
