SEEDORF: “WE WANT TO CONVINCE”

(IN THE PHOTO: Clarence Seedorf in this afternoon’s press conference)
MILANELLO -  Here’s what Milan’s coach had to say to the press this afternoon at the Milanello sports centre.
"We haven’t even spoken about the Champions League match as all the matches we play have to contribute to improving our condition. To get to that match in good shape, we have to do well against Bologna".
"We’ll have to perform beyond 90%. The team weren’t demotivated. There’s disappointment for the result but when the adversary does better than you, you have to accept the defeat. That doesn’t take away from the fact that we have discussed how to improve certain things and I saw the right mentality to do that. If we don’t count the match against Napoli, the number of shots on target against us has been cut in half. That’s a strategy that we’ve been working on in the first three league matches and it’s comforting. Against Napoli, we had three players on the pitch who were not used to playing. Abate hadn’t played for two months and Essien and Taarabt were making their debuts".
"It’s important to concede few goals in Italy. Bologna are a team to be respected for their history and they got all three points against Torino as well. They know exactly what they want to do and they have two very good forwards and are well organized. There are no big doubts over the line-up. Silvestre is not yet 100% and Robinho will be out for another 7-10 days”.
“I had to play Essien against Napoli as the players have to get to know each other on the field. He’s a plyer that perhaps needs our help in this early phase. The original idea was to play him tomorrow but he had been showing good signs in training and so we gave him the start against Napoli”.
“I’ve seen the statistics and we’re in line with the other teams in terms of how much we’re running. But it’s not just a question of how much you run, but how well you run. The team has to grow under all points of view, even athletically. I want to respect Allegri and not pass the blame to him. When you’re running to catch up, you struggle more mentally and physically. At the end of the 2007 season we were really exhausted. We have work to do both mentally and physically”.
“We have to be patient with Honda as many talented players in Italy needed time. Italy’s very different to Russia and we’ve seen with the Japanese side what he’s capable of. He’s working hard and working well. Bit by bit, he’ll get more effective. He’s ready and the fever is behind him.”
“Poli can play almost anywhere so there’s a good chance he’ll find some space. He does well at both ends of the pitch. He’s found match time hard to come by recently but he’s very motivated and we speak every day as I don’t want his head to drop. He’ll be an important player for us. All players will have matches when things don’t come off. Balotelli has an enormous talent and we all hope he’ll become a great champion. He has a lot of desire and sooner or later, it’ll happen. Now he’s more serene. What happened in Naples is normal as he’s a human being”.
"Everyone wants to win, we want to be convincing in what we do and play a positive game. I’m happy with the atmosphere at the club and the determination in everyone’s eyes and I’m optimistic about the growth of the team. Having dinner with Berlusconi the other night we talked about the club and the future. There’s a lot of desire to bring the club higher but I won’t reveal what was said as it was a private dinner”.
“Abate, Taarabt and Essien could be on the pitch together. We only have two strikers available and while Pazzini could play with Balotelli, that would leave me no options on the bench. There’s also Petagna but we can’t give him too much responsibility. Kakà is a great professional. He didn’t come here just to get back in the national side, he wants to make the difference for this team. The Brazilian coach holds him in high esteem and he has a good chance of making the team. Agianst Napoli, he pushed out wide a few times and he has that freedom to move on the pitch”.