MILAN - Click here for the complete interview with Alexandre Pato from Dubai.
Monthly Archives: December 2011
ALLEGRI AND I WITH THE SAME AIM
MILAN – Here’s what ALexandre Pato had to say from Dubai today."I think I can say that winning the Italian league is extremely difficult so doing it was a great satisfaction. We won the Super Cup as well. It was an important year and injuries apart it went really well.”
“When I arrived in Milan, I had to wait a while before playing but since I started I’ve always wanted to win. We didn’t win from the start but we did it with coach Allegri and I’m really happy about that.”
“I always want to win. That’s my objective in every game. I’ll always give my all in all the games I play to help the team.”
“I won’t hide the fact that the Champions League is the most important objective. It’s where all the big team plays so you have to try and get as far as you can. But we want to win the league as well and won’t sacrifice it. We’ll have to be careful of other teams though. Not just Juventus because there are other teams that are well prepared and can do well right up until the end.”
“Before the draw for the Champions League I spoke to Andre Santos at Arsenal and told him that we would be playing against each other. And I was right. Now we just have to wait, prepare well and stay focused. It’ll be a tough game like all the others. They have a lot of young players who really want to win and a great coach in Wenger so we’ll have to give our all to get through.”
“The relationship with Allegri is very professional. He spoke with the whole team yesterday and we’re all here with the same aim. To do the best we can because all players here can play their part in winning. There’s no tension, we’re very calm and working well ahead of the friendly with PSG. We want to start the year well. We’re both professionals and we know we have to do our best all the time for the team and ourselves. He, like me, thinks the same. Win and help the team. We’re fine with the coach, you even saw us playing together during training.”
“I saw my name linked with PSG but I onlòy mentioned them because we play them in a few days.”
“I mentioned Carlo Ancelotti a few days ago but I also mentioned Leonardo. No one wrote that. They were both my coaches here at Milan. All three were good and all three though along the same lines; winning is everything. Allegri’s advice to me always welcome.”
“I don’t know if PSG are after me. I haven’t even spoken to my agent. He only called me once and that was four years ago when he asked me where I wanted to go. That was the only time I made a choice about where I wanted to play and I chose Milan. I think he’ll only speak to me when there’s something real to report.”
“If Carlo Ancelotti was to call me now I saw to him what I would say to anyone else. He someone I’ve worked with and when you talk about the job, you have to talk to my agent. But just to talk with him wouldn’t be a problem because he’s someone who has been a t thins club for a long time. I could talk to him like I could talk to my first coach Vel.
I sent him Christmas wishes recently, but to him personally like all the people on my list. And he responded like all the others.”
“My contract with the club goes up to 2014. I want to do well and honour my contract but as far as the transfer market goes, the club will speak to my agent about such things.”
“Tevez? I think as a player, eveyone likes him. He’s a real champion and if he was to come here, we’d be happy. Milan always have great players and another one would be welcome. With or without him, whether or not I play is up to the coach. Even in the Champions League where Tevez wouldn’t be able to play”Aquilani said the coach doesn’t have to be your friend. That’s his opinion and I respect it. I just think about doing my best on the pitch and keeping my private life private.”
We’ll celebrate the New Year this evening and we’re ready to start it on the right foot. A wish for the New Year? That it’ll be a great year for all Milan fans!”
ATHLETIC AIMS
(IN THE PHOTO: Pato and Ibrahimovic during the warm up)
MILAN – Work continues for the team in Dubai. The team got back training this morning at 9.30 (6.30 Italian time) at the Al Ahli Club in the city.
The first of today’s two sessions saw Allegri’s players involved in intense athletic training with the team doing a series of callisthenics on the floor for both strength and flexibility followed by a run around the pitch.
The team then divided itself into two groups. The players who worked out on the sand yesterday did so again. The rest of the squad worked on maintaining possession of the ball for a while then played a practice match with four reduced goals working on speed and movement.After this phase of training was finished, the athletic work continued: Nesta had a run while the rest of the group did a series of athletic drills.
Clarence Seedorf trained alone in the hotel gym.
Aquilani took a knock tohis ancle in training yesterday and after warming up with the team, he spent the session in the club gym.
Boateng and Inzaghi did only the warm up with the team due to some minor muscle problems.This afternoon, trainin is scheduled for 16.30 local time.
DUBAI: MORNING TRAINING, THE PHOTOS
MILAN - Click here for pictures of the players in action this morning in Dubai.
PELUSO: "Milan are favourites but…"
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MILANO – According to the official club website, here’s what Atalanta defender Federico Peluso had to say: “I’m growing and I know I can do better. Now we have to concentrate on our next game. Milan are favourites on paper, but we’ve shown that it’s not easy for any team to play in Bergamo.”
Alexandre Pato: I want to win titles at AC Milan, and will not join Paris Saint-Germain
The Brazil international endured a frustrating 2011 through injuries and has been linked with a move away from the Scudetto holders, but has success in Italy in mind
PATO: "There’s no tension with the coach."
MILAN – Here’s what Alexandre Pato had to say to the Milan Channel in an exclusive interview with the Milan Channel from Dubai: “I’m here to do my job, we’re all professionals. Allegri spoke to the team yesterday and we’re all here to do our best. There’s no tension with the coach and we even played together in the same team yesterday, PSG weren’t looking for me. My agent takes care of the market stuff and the last I spoke with him as 4 years ago when I joined Milan. I’ve had three coaches here and they were all good and I’m here to do what is asked of me.” Pato ended by sending his best wishes to all Milan fans.
PATO: "I always want to win"
MILANO – Here’s what Alexandre Pato had to say from Dubai about the league and the Champions League: “I always want to win. I’ll wait to play and give my all to win. I think the Champions League is the main aim. We’ll have to be careful of the other teams though. I spoke with Andre Santos at Arsenal, we just have to stay calm and focused.”
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SIR ALEX!
MILAN - Milan's official website wishes to send birthday grettings and best wishes to Sir Alex Ferguson.Born 31 December 1941, the Manchester Untied manager has been at the club since 1986 and was Milan's adversary in the Champions League campaigns of 2005, 2007 and 2010.All the best Sir Alex.
NEW YEAR’S DINNER: THE MENU
MILAN – This evening the tem will have their New Year’s dinner. Here’s the menu to be prepared by Italian chefs Michele Persechini and Oscar Basini.Starter:Marinated salmonBeef carpaccio with truffle oilTomato gratinataGrlled vegetables.First course:LasagneTortellini with butter and sageSeafood risottoSecond course:Beef fillet with tyme and bernese sauceEncrusted salmonRoasted lamb chopsGrilled prawnsRoast potatoesLentils and porkAranciniDessert:Christmas cakeCreamed mangoTiramisu
ARSENAL: IN ACTION TODAY AGAINST QPR
MILAN - After the home draw against Wolves, Arsenal will ake to the pitch today at 16.00 against QPR at the Emirates stadium in London.
Andrea Pirlo: I am convinced that I made the right decision leaving AC Milan for Juventus
The Italy international swapped the Scudetto holders for Antonio Conte’s men in the summer, and feels that his choice has been justified due to the Turin club’s success this term
‘Jose Mourinho is a disrespectful hypocrite’ & the Top 10 most read editorials of 2011
The ‘Special One’ just misses out on No. 1, as transfer features dominate the Top 10
Bayern Munich fans caught having sex in the stands & the Top 10 most read news stories of 2011
Transfer news, awards and the Champions League dominate our most read content, but none outdo the most outrageous story of the year!
CARLO ANCELOTTI TO PSG
MILAN - Carlo Ancelotti is the new coach of Paris Saint Germain. The ex Milan coach who also won the English title with Chelsea has signed a contract which ties him to the club until June 2014. His first game in charge of the Parisians will be against Milan on 4 Januray in Dubai.
ON THE BALL
(IN THE PHOTO: Some action during the practice match)
MILAN – The squad got back to work this afternoon at 14.30 Italian time (17.30 local time), for the second of today’s training sessions. The team trained all together on the pitches of the Al Ahli Club in the city after the athletic training this morning.
The only absent team member was Clarence Seedorf who followed a personalised training program in the team hotel’s gym.
Work started with the team doing a warm up divided into groups. The session then continued with some work on maintaining possession of the ball.
Training then went on with some themed practice matches of attack against defense: The first match saw Allegri’s team divided into 4 mini teams for a drill on circulating the ball.
The second match saw the team divided in two which saw the attacking team having to complete 8 passes before shooting and the defending team having to press.
To see all the photos from this afternoons session, click here.
DUBAI: AFTERNOON TRAINING AND A PRACTICE MATCH
MILAN - Click here to read what the players did in the second session of the day.
DUBAI: PHOTOS FROM THE AFTERNOON TRAINING SESSION
MILAN - Clcik here for the photos from this afternoon's training session in Dubai.
Roberto Mancini dismisses talk of Manchester City move for Lille’s Eden Hazard in January
The Italian has distanced himself from rumours linking his club with the Belgian starlet, whilst revealing his desire that Carlos Tevez’s move to AC Milan will soon be completed
The Death of the Fullback
This piece was meant to run as a Tactics Thursday yesterday, but the thought of extorting 50M from PSG and doing a little post-XMAS shopping was simply too good to pass up. Now this isn’t meant to be a eulogy for my favorite position by any means, but a discussion on what has happened to the fullback?
Being a Milan fan we are no stranger to the fullback position, being the home of arguably two of the World’s best in Paolo Maldini and Cafu, not to mention a host of other talented options in Costacurta, Serginho, Panucci , Janks, and others. But in the past few years outside of the emergence of Ignazio Abate at RB, Milan, Serie A, and much of the World has seen a decline in the fullback as we knew it. Gone is the marauding fullback capable of joining the attack as well as defending better than anyone else on the team, able to track down wingers and negate opposing crosses. I am not talking Maldini-esque challenges, but simply the ability to be tactically sound and handle both sides of the ball equally well.
Now players with the athleticism of their fullbacking forefathers are moved into wing positions in the midfield, attacking more and defending less, or into wing-back positions for coaches who choose to deploy only three at the back. In fact few players are turned into fullbacks as was done successfully with Serginho and now Abate at AC Milan. Players like Dani Alves and Gareth Bale have the athleticism and raw talent to be some of the best fullbacks in the game but instead their inability to learn the nuances of defense has turned them into attack minded wingers as opposed to all around talents at fullbacks. Why aren’t coaches nurturing this position anymore, has the game changed to make the wide attack irrelevant? Pressing and possession is now the name of the game, and a lot of teams are using more narrow formations with skilled players in the middle of the field and less reliance on outside attacks. Sure some teams still play very wide, but often times with wingbacks and wingers instead of the old fashioned way with fullbacks.
Italy, often known for producing quality defenders seems to be having the same problem. Maggio and Dossena of Napoli are now wing-backs; same can be said for Armero at Udinese. Promising young defenders like Santon and Motta are afterthoughts, with Motta being the biggest pile of unrealized hype I have seen in a while, no coincidence it was Roma fans doing the hyping, but you get my point. At Juventus Conte has deployed Chiellini, a prototypical CB at LB, even Arsene Wenger has deployed four CBs at the back due to injuries. Pep Guardiola has seemingly done the same, but instead of removing fullbacks he seems to be stepping away from the defender completely hoping to deploy more midfield type players. Is it tactics, is it lack of talent, or is it simply the extinction of the fullback like the sweeper before him?
Tough to tell really and I am not going to go ahead and say that the fullback is in fact going extinct, but the idea of seeing the next Paolo Maldini seems farther and farther away from ever happening. There are still supremely talented players and youngsters at the positions, as well as tried and true throwbacks. Leighton Baines, for one, always makes me smile as does Patrice Evra and Balzaretti. But players like Bertrand, the vice Ashley Cole at Chelsea, or Van Der Weil or even Abate can help bring the role back into prominence but we may never see the completeness of the Legends before them.
DUBAI: THE SECOND SESSION HAS STARTED
MILAN - The Rossoneri have started their second training session of the day in Dubai. The team is training at the Al Ahli club in the city.
DUBAI: MILAN-PSG, PRESENTATION ON TUESDAY
MILAN - On Tuesday 3 January at the Emirates headquarters in Dubai there will be the official presentation of the Milan-PSG friendly to be played the day after. The presentation will take place at 12.00 local time, (9.00 in Italy)
DUBAI: TRANSPORT LOGISTICS
MILAN - From the Park Hyatt Dubai, where the team are staying to the training pitch is only 10 kilometres. A ideal logistiscal situation for the team that will be doing double training session both today and tommorrow.
AQUILANI: "I’m happy at Milan"
MILAN – After training this morning, Alberto Aquilani spoke to the Milan Channel: “The first season has been really positive. I’m happy at Milan, we have great players, all real professionals. We all want to play as much as possible but this is normal. The objective is to confirm our good form in the league and go further in the Champions League. The draw could have been worse. Arsenal are a team that I respect as I played against the with Liverpool but at the moment, Barcelona and Real Madrid are the best teams at the moment and being drawn with Real would have been tougher.”
DUBAI: PHOTOS FROM THE FIRST TRAINING SESSION
MILAN - Click here for the photos from Milan's first training session of the winter training camp.
DUBAI: CROWDS EXPECTED FOR THE ROSSONERI AFTERNOON TRAINING SESSION
MILANO - Today is a holiday in Dubai and that's why there weren't too many fans at the tream's morning training session. A large number of supporters are expected however in the afternoon.
ATALANTA: DOUBLE TRAINING SESSION TODAY
MILAN – Atalanta, coached by Stefano Colantuono will undergo a double training session today after the week of Christmas celebrations. Ferreira Pinto and Brighi are training apart while Capelli is still coming back from injury. The club’s four South Americans have yet to come back from their extended holidays.
DUBAI: THE FIRST TRAINING SESSION
MILAN - Click here to read what the players did in their first training session in Dubai.
SLOW AND STEADY…
(IN THE PHOTO: Today at Dubai, Ignazio Abate with Urby Emanuelson and the fans)
MILAN – When Ignazio doesn’t play for Milan, it makes the news. He’s become a key player for the Rossoneri and the numbers from 2011 speak loud and clear: 38 official games played in the calendar year, substituted only twice, 7 minutes from the end of Milan-Napoli in February and 3 from the end of Milan-Viktoria Plzen in September.
Ignazio is playing often and well. Ahead of Milan-Siena in mid-December, he twisted his ankle which kept him out for a while and this is why he’s started slowly back today. Autographs, a warm up and a run before taking a dip in the ocean. But you can be sure that Abate wants to start 2012 running and determined to get as far as possible.
After a holiday with his family in Campania, Abate wants to start from where he left off against Bologna where in his post-match interview he spoke with his heart on his sleeve about what the draw meant to the team and the position in the league. Pushing forward, tracking back, crosses and quality. Bread and butter for Ignazio and he’s hungry.
TRAINING IN THE SUNSHINE
MILAN – The team were ready to train today at 10.00 local time (07.00 in Italy) at the Al Ahli Club in the city. The first training session of the second half of the 2011/2012 season started half an hour later.
Arounf 50 fans were waiting for the Italian champions spread around the training ground with Ibrahimovic getting most of the attention. After the brief team talk held by Allegri, the team started with callisthenic exercises for their abdominals and back.
Amelia, Antonini, Mexes, Piscitelli, Robinho, Aquilani, Zambrotta, Abate and De Sciglio trained on the beach to strengthen leg muscles. Zambrotta and Abate both followed personalised programes in the sand. This was followed by a dip for everyone to cool down.The other players worked on the pitch with the ball at their feet, including Sandro Nesta who trained with the group.The second training session of the day will start at around 17.00 (14.00 in Italy).