Conceicao: ‘Milan eager to change, but Leao out against Juventus’ | OneFootball

New Milan coach Sergio Conceicao confirms Rafael Leao is out of the Supercoppa Italiana semi-final against Juventus, but he found players who ‘are eager to change a few things.’

It kicks off in Riyadh on Friday at 19.00 GMT and the winners will go on to face Inter for the trophy on Monday, January 6.

The dramatic events of last week saw the Rossoneri sack Paulo Fonseca to bring in Conceicao, so this will be his debut on the Diavolo bench.

“The initial impact has been very positive, I saw a group that is eager to change a few things,” he told Milan TV.

“I saw players who want to understand different tactical ideas and this humility is important for me, these are the foundations to build on. We worked very well, obviously I only just arrived and then we had to travel, so there hasn’t been much time to train.

“We’ve got to prepare as best we can to win tomorrow.”

Conceicao choices limited on Milan debut

epa11787603 Milan’s Rafael Leao during the Italian Serie A soccer match between Hellas Verona and AC Milan, in Verona, Italy, 20 December 2024. EPA-EFE/EMANUELE PENNACCHIO

Conceicao is up against Thiago Motta’s Juventus in the Supercoppa Italiana semi-final and if there is no winner after 90 minutes, it goes straight to a penalty shoot-out.

“We must be competitive, organised, understand what we can do to Juve on a strategic level,” continued the coach.

“We’ve got to work hard, be aggressive and I tried to be incisive with the squad on some aspects that are fundamental for me. Even with injuries and not much time to work, we must look Juve in the eyes with no excuses and try to beat them.”

Rafael Leao was the biggest injury doubt going into the match, while Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah are not fully fit either.

“It will be honestly difficult to say until the last minute, every hour is important to see how they react,” noted Conceicao.

“Pulisic is back training with the squad, but Leao is not, whereas we’ll see with Musah. It’s impossible for Leao to be available tomorrow, but the others are and the doubt is whether they can handle 90 minutes. These are the choices I have to make.”

Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Samuel Chukwueze and Alessandro Florenzi are not even part of the squad for this Supercoppa Italiana adventure in Riyadh.