PIOLI: "WE'RE MOTIVATED, DREAMS ARE GOOD"
Press Conference
Less than 10 days after the league clash, AC Milan and Napoli meet again for the second act of the trilogy, the first leg of an unprecedented Italian Champions League derby. Presenting the quarter-final at San Siro in a press conference from Milanello, and live on Milan TV, YouTube and Twitch, were Coach Pioli and Theo Hernández.
BALANCE
"I think we will find the balance, but tomorrow starts another tough match, 180 minutes long. The league performances have given us some indication, we know we have to play a great game to be up to the task against such a strong team. And we are only focused on that.
THE SEASON'S PERFORMANCES
"Regardless of the performances, all that matters now is the AC Milan team that takes the field tomorrow, we'll review at the end of the season. We must play a focused game in every aspect, the opponents have great quality and they know how to take advantage of every mistake and be dangerous. We cannot afford to drop our concentration levels because the stakes are very high. In the Champions League we showed we are up to the level, we have to play with a lot of mental intensity".
DREAMERS OR REALISTS
"With the power of dreams we won the Scudetto, so dreaming is good for us".
SAN SIRO AND HISTORY
"The stadium and our fans will take the field, from them will come the right push to give our best".
MENTAL FREEDOM
"We will not be more 'light-hearted' than them. We are talking about Champions League, AC Milan, history, we are calm because we know we have worked well, but both teams will be highly motivated, to get to the semi-finals and try to win the Champions League would be a beautiful goal.
NAPOLI
"A team of the highest calibre, the team that has scored the most goals in the Champions League and won the most games after Bayern. They have great quality but we start from 0-0 and I expect two balanced matches. We can expect something different from them, which can also be a new attitude in the defensive phase, and we have to be good at recognising that."
THE PREVIOUS MATCH AT THE MARADONA
"We've had a lot of good games but tomorrow's match is very important. I don't think the 4-0 in the league counts, it's the past and at San Siro it will be a different game, we expect a strong Napoli side but we have prepared very well for the match, at home we have the fans on our side and that's important."
A TRUE ROSSONERO
"For me to be vice-captain is a great honour, I have been happy since the first day I got here, everyone has been behind me every day. I dream of staying here as long as possible, but I only think about the present and tomorrow's game, which is the most important one."
NAPOLI WITHOUT OSIMHEN
"Nothing changes for us, everyone is strong on Napoli , it's a team of great players and whoever replaces him will do well".
DI LORENZO AND THE ROLE OF THE FULLBACK
"We are two different players, he has some qualities better than me and I have others better than him, it's difficult to compare us".
GIROUD AND THE YOUTH
"We are all important players for AC Milan, those who are more experienced will try to charge the team to do the best possible. We dream of winning the Champions League but we only have to think about playing well tomorrow."
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