Coach Gennaro Gattuso, Bonucci, Kessie and Romagnoli spoke to the media after the Europa League 0-2 defeat against Arsenal.
Franck Kessie: Gattuso gave us a good speech after the match
Franck Kessie, in an interview with Premium Sport, talked about the chances of qualifying for the next Champions League through the fourth place in the league:
“We are charged for the challenge with Genoa, now it’s the only match that counts, we have to take the 3 points. We really believe we can achieve Champions League qualification for next year. What did Gattuso tell us after the European defeat? The coach gave us a good speech, we had not lost a game in the last three months and we must immediately forget about this flop and think about the next game”.
Rino Gattuso showed his disappointment after the negative result but assured that the tie against Arsenal is not over yet:
We will focus on Genoa now, and then we will think on how to turn this tie around. In football, you should never say never. We will go to London and we will give it our best shot. We are AC Milan and we have to respect this jersey. Tonight we could have scored. This tie is not over and although it will be difficult, we will try to do much better.
Bonucci: We’ll see a great Milan in London
“A bit of fear and inexperience come out. You could see it in the faces of the players that there was not the courage to fight like in previous games, but it’s part of our growth journey, it was the first European game of a certain level for many players. It would be too easy to blame our physical condition but in the end the legs obey to the mind. This was our problem in the first half while in the second we improved.
With Genoa, on Sunday, it will be a tough game, they will try to grab a positive result. We will have to find our energy and be the Milan of the previous 13 games again. Who put us most in trouble? Wilshere moved a lot between the lines but all of the opponent midfielders created many difficulties when they had the ball. In the first half we failed to push forward and were not enough accurate to succeed. What can I say to the Milan fans who will come to London? I’m sure we’ll see a great Milan in London”.
Alessio Romagnoli was interviewed by Sky Sport at the end of Milan-Arsenal.
On the match: “Some episodes have condemned us, we started the game well, we conceded two stupid goals and fuc*ed up the first leg. We will try to do better in the return game, we have nothing to lose“.
On the difference with Arsenal: “We gave everything on the pitch but we made errors on the two goals. We have to do better next time“.
On the return match: “It’s difficult but we will try, now we have nothing left to lose“.
Match Report: Two goals conceded in the first half give the Gunners the advantage in the Last-16 tie
The match starts at a high tempo with both teams showing fine technical abilities and quality passing. The first threat comes from Suso, who almost finds Bonaventura in the box with a poisoned cross in the 3’. Mkhitaryan responds right away but his shot ends wide. In the 10’, Cutronehits the side netting coming close for the Rossoneri. In the 15’, Özil finds Mkhitaryan in the box, the Armenian cuts inside, fires and, after a deflection from Bonucci, finds the back of the net.
AC Milan react through Bonaventura, whose volley ends just wide of the near post. Donnarumma stands out parrying away Chambers’ strike in the 42’ and denying Welbeck on a one-on-one in the 43’. Just before the break, Özil, again, assists Ramsey who dribbles past Gigio and doubles the Gunners’ lead. In the 52’, Bonaventura meets Calabria’s low cross but sends the ball over the bar from close range. Calhanoglu insists with a shot from distance in the 56’ but his shot is deflected, corner. In the 80’, Bonaventura blasts a shot but again is deflected and ends in another corner. Despite the effort to pull one back, the score remains the same: 0-2 to Arsenal.
AC Milan (4-3-3): Donnarumma; Calabria, Bonucci, Romagnoli, Rodriguez; Kessié, Biglia, Bonaventura; Suso, Cutrone, Calhanoglu.
Arsenal (4-3-3): Ospina; Chambers, Mustafi, Koscielny, Kolasinac; Ramsey, Xhaka, Wilshere; Mkhitaryan, Welbeck, Ozil.
Goals: 15’ Mkhitaryan (A), 45’+4 Ramsey (A)
Booked: 60’ Kolasinac (A), 71’ Ramsey (A)
