(ARCHIVED PHOTO: Seedorf in his press conference)
MILANELLO – Clarence Seedorf had this to say ahead of Atalanta-Milan on Sunday lunchtime in Bergamo:
"There’s a bit of disappointment from Kakà and Robinho not being called up for Brazil but that country always has an embarassment of riches. They’re two great guys and have shown determination since the news. Brazil haven’t changed much since the Confederations Cup and the coach wanted to give continuity. Balance has been the key word this week. These are the key words, to do well, to be objective and to be clear after a loss. The why, the how, to adjust things but at the same time to continue with your own ideas and work. At the same time after the derby win, there’s a lot of enthusiasm for the win, a single win against an adversary of high value but the work done the week after continues the same way, with objectivity and understanding where we are in the league and what our objectives are, to go into the last two matches in the best way we can. Atalanta have never been an easy team from anyone to face. It’s never been easy for Milan to get points from Bergamo. The focus since Wednesday has been on Atalanta. The focus has been there and that’s what our daily discussions have been about. We’re quick to move our focus to the next game and we’ll be using the extra-push that the derby win has given us. Working with the BBC for the World Cup will give me a chance to live the tournament up close. I have nothing to say about what Berlusconi has been reported saying. My focus is on the match. It’s gratifying when the players support you in public and I’ve always spoken well of this group. We’re all pulling in the same direction”.
“I don’t think there’ll be problems at the stadium tomorrow. We should be talking about what we want to see and that’s both sets of fans getting behind their team. I’m friends with Zanetti and I thanked him for all he has done and given in the game. Let’s hope there’ll be more players like him in the future. I don’t know if we’ll have the same formation tomorrow. We’ve shown a lot of balance as a group. El Shaarawy is in fine form like the rest of the 23 players”.
“We can only focus on our own game and not Torino-Parma and I won’t talk about President Berlusconi. I’m calm and I think that Balotelli’s performances have shown his growth. We won’t be changing our philosophy. I won’t talk about the line-up as I don’t want to give anything away. I have clear ideas about how we’ll be playing against Atalanta. They played well against Juventus and they’ll be eager to do well in their last home game. We’ll need the right level of aggression. Myself and the players know each other better now. The derby is always a special match and it was great to see their joy and the applause from the fans. These are all things that will increase the affinity between me and the players”.