Massimiliano Allegri was pleased Milan managed to beat Genoa “in a difficult atmosphere. So far criticism has been too harsh.”
Massimiliano Allegri was pleased Milan managed to beat Genoa “in a difficult atmosphere. So far criticism has been too harsh.”
The Rossoneri were again uninspired, but squeezed past Genoa 1-0 at San Siro thanks to a late Stephan El Shaarawy strike.
“It was a deserved victory and I think so far the criticism has been harsh considering what the lads did on the field,” said the Coach.
“We could’ve scored in the first half and there were several dubious penalty incidents. We also made a lot of mistakes in our passing, which also happened in Malaga.
“We got this result in a difficult atmosphere and I am glad the players reacted to it. I am happy with the win.”
It had been reported Allegri was facing the axe if he failed to win this evening.
“I was very relaxed because the team had always put in strong performances. We just needed to find some belief and confidence, especially in front of goal. With goals everything becomes easier. I experienced a similar situation when I was at Cagliari.”
Milan again used the 3-4-3 system that was given its debut against Malaga in the Champions League midweek.
“We are a little more attacking with this system. It’s difficult to say right now whether it is better or worse than a four-man defence. When 1-0 up we had several chances to double our lead, so we hope to build on that in our next match against Palermo.”
Alexandre Pato made his first Serie A start in eight months and Allegri was satisfied.
“He put in a good performance and was often dangerous. In the last eight months he has basically played a game and a half, so it’s difficult for him to find full fitness straight away. I substituted him because he was tired.
“I think Milan’s ‘cure’ is simply an issue of results and not performances. Our worst game of the season was against Anderlecht in the Champions League.”