PIOLI: "FOCUS AND INTENSITY NEEDED"

The victory in the Derby, the draw in Salzburg and now the away fixture in Genoa on the horizon. There is no time to rest for AC Milan in these weeks, and tomorrow they are back on the field: Sampdoria await us at 20:45 at Marassi, and Coach Pioli spoke in a press conference today to discuss the match. His words were broadcasted live on Milan TV, YouTube and Twitch.

THE TRIP TO GENOA
"We will, no doubt, face a tough opposition, with good identity and high motivation. They are coming off the back of  two home draws against important teams and a defeat, so they will certainly be motivated to do well."

HOME AND AWAY PERFORMANCES
"It is too early to fully evaluate our performances, comparing the home fixtures with the away ones. But I think the quality of our matches counts for a lot: in Bergamo we did well, against Sassuolo and Salzburg we could have done better."

THE TREQUARTISTA
"We have various solutions and characteristics to work with. Charles is doing better and better and is fitting in well with the group. He still needs more time to further understand our game and the movements of his teammates. Brahim has the pace and agility to give us the upper hand; I count on him as well as Adli. Yacine is a talented and prospective player and I expect a lot from him too but I have to make a decision."

ORIGI AND DEST
"Divock has improved and has picked up the pace with more continuity in training. He's player with a lot of talent but needs game-time. With Dest, it's like I already knew him because we'd been following him for a while. I found in him the characteristics I expected. In Salzburg he did well defensively, but he can and must do more going forward with the quality he has. He likes to play down the left as well, but we'll see over the course of the season. He is young but ready, with important experience."

INDIVIDUALS
"Rebić has a strong back problem, and is undergoing all the necessary treatment but unfortunately he is still available. I was pleased with Pobega on Tuesday night, he played with vigour and strength, as he often does. He is growing and we are counting on him more. Saelemaekers played well in Salzburg too, with intelligence."

THE DEFENSIVE PHASE
"We conceded a few too many goals. We need the right attitude from the whole team. We need to improve our intensity, communication and attention when defending. We need to improve our set pieces too which we are working on and I hope to see improvements soon."

THE AVAILABLE SQUAD
"I'm sure we have a strong group of players with a clear playing identity. They all train hard and consistently so I have every faith in them. For me, the line-up I will field tomorrow will be best suited to the match. It's clear that individual performances will influence my selection decisions."

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