PIOLI: "WE HAVE TO PUSH ON"

With matchday 33 in the league right around the corner for the Rossoneri, Pioli’s boys are preparing to host Parma at San Siro after back-to-back home wins over Roma and Juventus. With just one day left until our home clash with the Crociati, Coach Stefano Pioli spoke in his pre-match press conference at Milanello. Here’s what he had to say.

TOMORROW'S GAME AT SAN SIRO
"We have a duty to continue earning points if we want to get back into Europe. Tomorrow we’ll be facing a dangerous and difficult side, we’ll have to make sure we’re ready both physically and mentally. Up to this point we’ve been building so much, in terms of how we play on the pitch and the clear mentality we have. It’s not like we’ll be starting from scratch tomorrow, but we’ll have to make sure we exploit our strengths. We have our own philosophy of the game and our own mentality, and these have been the ingredients which have helped us bring home some big results. We have to continue like this. Our next six games will tell us what kind of team we are."

PREPARATION
"It's great that the Club’s directors appreciate the work me and my staff and doing, we have to continue working on this team. But I have to say that right now we’re playing more with our heads than our bodies.”

GAMES AGAINST SMALLER SIDES
"I'm convinced that if we played the game in Ferrara 100 more times, we'd win 99 of them. We lacked clinicality in front of goal despite all of the chances we created. Tomorrow we'll need a lot of concentration."

NAPOLI
"We showed that we know how to soak up pressure and deal with a complicated game, because Napoli are a very strong side."

THE LINE-UP
"Tomorrow I’ll select whoever's doing the best physically. Whatever changes I make won't mean a change in our philosophy. Those who start and those who come off the bench tomorrow will be equally as important."

INDIVIDUALS
"The injury has taken a bit of a toll on Ibra’s fitness. He's a winner, and he wasn’t happy when he came off because we were losing. That's the right way to be, he’s very driven. Bonaventura? He's a great player and he’s done well both off the bench and when he's started games. Theo? His performances are very consistent, you can see him improving even during games. Against Napoli, despite being up against a tough opponent like Callejon, he put in a great performance, defensively too. He can become one of the best full-backs in the world. Leão? He's improving a lot. He has remarkable potential, but he still has a lot of room to grow. I’ve been very impressed by his attitude. Gigio? He doesn't get down after criticism and he doesn’t let it go to his head when things are going well. He's got great composure and he’s doing extremely well. I don’t think either of Napoli’s goals can be blamed on him."

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