Amorim: I'd give the summer signings a perfect 10; Chivu's comments? I have nothing to say

Milan will face Juventus, their Round 3 Serie A opponent, away from home at 02:45 on September 7, Beijing time (CEST). Manager Amorim attended the pre-match press conference. This article is the second part of the press conference.

Carlos Passerini (Corriere della Sera): Good afternoon, Ruben. You just mentioned that you're very satisfied and happy with this transfer window's business. But I'd like to ask two specific questions: First, in Italy, our media and fans love rating teams' transfer operations. If you had to rate Milan's recruitment, what score would you give? Second, regarding the current attacking lineup, are you still 100% convinced we don't need to bring in an additional striker to partner with Gonçalo Ramos and Francesco Camarda?

Regarding the first question, since everyone likes to rate transfer work, if I absolutely have to give a score, personally I wouldn't hesitate to give a perfect 10. In my eyes, my players are the best players in the world, so I would never sit here and hypocritically give an 8 or a 9. Every player brought in this summer fits perfectly with our team, so I have to give a 10. Because in my heart, I have the best team in the world.

As for the attack, I know the media and outside world are paying attention. I think I've also mentioned in previous press conferences that we need to give Francesco Camarda enough space to develop. At the same time, I think we can rotate several attacking players up front. In Italy, many teams place great emphasis on man-marking in defense. In certain specific matches, changing the characteristics and type of striker on the field—for example, using a player with Pulisic's technical qualities to change our playing style—often brings unexpected tactical advantages.

So I will do my best to manage each player scientifically. There's absolutely no team in the world that can have all the player characteristics needed to handle every possible contingency over a long season. We can only do our best with this very balanced squad. We will use Camarda, and he will have his playing time; we just need to be patient and see.

Ultimately, it all depends on whether we can win the game. If we win, everything will be smooth and wonderful; but if we lose, then every detail can become a problem in the eyes of the outside world. This is the real and cruel professional reality that a manager must face. But I want to emphasize again to everyone that I am truly and sincerely satisfied and happy with the team I have now.

Andrea Ramazzotti (Gazzetta dello Sport): Hello, coach. The big battle starts tomorrow night. This is a relatively simple question: In your opinion, is now the right time to have Rabiot and Diego Moreira start together from the first minute?

We'll have to wait patiently until tomorrow to see. To be honest, I won't reveal tomorrow's starting lineup today. Given the need for continuous reasonable rotation within the squad, keeping starting lineup information within the technical staff is a very important strategy for us.

Regarding these two players' fitness, Diego Moreira has been training with the team for two full weeks now. Last week, even after training with us for just one week, we still included him on the squad list, and now he's had an additional week of team training. This week's preparation time is quite substantial, and compared to last week, I can clearly feel he's in much better physical and fitness condition. He, like Rabiot, is a very important option for us in two completely different tactical positions.

Francesco Rocchi (RAI): Do you have any response to Cristian Chivu's recent comment that "Juventus vs. Milan is not a battle to decide the league title"?

I have nothing to say about that. My complete focus is on our match tomorrow. What I know is that if we get three points in tomorrow's match, we'll be at the top of the table, though there may be several other teams level with us. But I emphasize again, my only concern and focus is always our next match and our own team. We still have extremely heavy work to do.

Claudio Raimondi (Sport Mediaset): Hello, Ruben. Throughout your glorious playing career and since transitioning to management, you've been recognized as an expert in big matches and strong confrontations. So I'm very curious to know: as Milan's manager, how do you see and experience your first major domestic rivalry clash in your managerial career? Compared to the big matches you experienced in the Premier League or the Sporting vs. Benfica derbies you managed in Portugal, do you feel any different weight or pressure? Also, will this match be the perfect litmus test for Milan's future potential and ceiling?

First of all, it depends on how much pressure you put on yourself. For me, there's no fundamental difference between so-called big club matches and what everyone calls "small club matches," because as Milan's manager, you must win every match you face. I don't categorize matches as "big matches" or "small matches"—every match carries the same weight for me and demands total effort.

We can find an example from last summer: at that time, we didn't even get ideal results in some warm-up matches, and overwhelming pressure immediately surfaced. Even though the entire team was still in the pre-season preparation phase, constantly going through large-scale personnel rotation and experiencing extremely exhausting long-distance travel, as soon as we didn't win, the pressure appeared immediately. Therefore, once you work at a top club like Milan, every match means bearing the heavy pressure of a big game.

However, I completely understand your strong curiosity when we face a top team like Juventus. This is indeed an excellent opportunity to test if we've improved compared to last week. Being able to challenge a top team with an excellent manager away from home is a great experience for the head coach, as it allows us to test if our players are truly ready for such a big occasion. But I'm very excited now and don't feel any concern. I think my team is ready.

I've also mentioned in many previous press conferences that when I look at Milan's past performances, they generally perform very well against big teams, which has never been my main concern. On the contrary, when facing so-called "weaker teams" that are considered less strong on paper and are usually thought to be easy to beat, that often worries me more. So I think the whole team and I are ready to go. This kind of strong confrontation is common in every country and league in the world. For me, this is still just an ordinary day in my daily work. I'm very excited and looking forward to seeing my players' performance in Sunday's match.

Traduzido por IA.

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