Ruben Amorim described Milan’s 4-0 away win against RB Salzburg in the Europa League as a “beautiful evening,” but stressed that the team and several players, including Francesco Camarda and hat-trick hero Alphadjo Cisse, still have plenty of room for improvement.
“We have played better in other matches, but today we managed to score,” said the Portuguese coach.
Amorim after RB Salzburg 0-4 Milan: “In other games we had more control”
Speaking to Sky Sport Italia after the match, Amorim reiterated that Milan had delivered stronger performances in some of their previous games this season. The difference this time was mainly their ability to convert goalscoring chances.
“In other matches we had more control, but today we managed to score. We played better on other occasions, but we focus too much on the result. There are aspects to improve, but it was a beautiful evening,” Amorim said, as reported by TMW.
The coach was then asked about nineteen-year-old Alphadjo Cisse, who scored a hat-trick. According to the Portuguese manager, the youngster still has a lot of work to do to reach the highest level, despite the excellent start to his adventure in the Rossoneri shirt, with five goals in his first seven games.
“He owes me nothing. He deserves the opportunities he is getting because of what he is doing on his own,” Amorim explained. “He knows how to be explosive and has a lot of heart, but he can improve both in training and during matches. Tonight all the praise is for him, but he has great potential and there are still several aspects to work on.”
Amorim: “I disagree, we played better in other matches”
Amorim was asked why Milan took so long to produce a performance of this kind. The coach, however, does not consider the win against Salzburg the perfect game.
“I disagree. As a team we played better in other matches. If our opponents had been more precise, there would have been five situations where they could have hurt us.”
The match still gave playing time to several players who have had few opportunities in Serie A this season, including Omari Hutchinson, Ardon Jashari and Davide Bartesaghi.
“They are part of the squad. It is impossible to always play with the same players. It is important to rotate the players. There are some risks in doing so, but I try to make the best decisions for the team. Tonight it went well, now we focus on Atalanta,” said the coach.
Amorim then stressed the importance of maintaining high competitiveness within the group, so that every player is aware that they can step onto the pitch, but also that they risk losing their place.
“The most important thing is that everyone knows they can play and that they can lose their place. That is why I need 22 competitive players throughout the year. Matches like this help them gain more self-confidence.”
The coach explained that he is mainly thinking about the young players, but he also mentioned Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who showed greater aggression against Salzburg.
Camarda, Amorim’s advice: “He must improve his explosiveness and speed”
The match was also an opportunity to see the very young Francesco Camarda on the pitch. Unlike Cisse, however, the forward was unable to get equally involved in the flow of the game.
Amorim identified explosiveness and speed as the main areas the youngster must work on to make further progress.
“He must improve in terms of explosiveness and speed. That is what he lacks, because he already knows how to do many things inside the penalty area. We are working on these aspects,” explained the coach.
The manager nevertheless left the door open to a broader use of the young forward, confirming that Camarda will have the opportunity to play a full match.
“He knows he will have the chance to play all 90 minutes.”