Musah exclusive: ‘I don’t mind if I play against Inter, we just need to win’ | OneFootball

After a fine performance from the substitutes’ bench against Juventus in the Supercoppa Italiana semi-final win in Riyadh, you may think Milan’s Yunus Musah would be desperate to start the showpiece occasion versus Inter.

Not so, insists the American international midfielder who says the only thing that really matters to him on Monday night is that Milan emerge victorious, and he claims his first winner’s medal in club football.

Musah’s numbers in the 36 minutes he played on Friday night were impressive. Firstly, he entered the game with his team 1-0 down and played a crucial role in overturning that scoreline for Milan to win 2-1.

Alvaro Morata and Yunus Musah of AC Milan celebrate their team’s second goal, an own goal scored by Federico Gatti of Juventus (not pictured) during the Italian Super Cup Semi-Final match between AC Milan and Juventus at Al Awwal Park on January 03, 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images)

It was Musah’s run and cross, deflected into his own goal by Juventus defender Federico Gatti, that proved the decisive strike. But his time on the pitch at Al Awwal Park in the Saudi Arabian capital city also featured 10/11 successful passes, 2/3 duels won, two recoveries and no fouls. Little wonder he was so warmly embraced by Milan team-mates come the full-time whistle.

Musah: Supercoppa ‘would be huge, I haven’t won anything with a club yet’

“It would be huge,” says Musah on the possibility of Milan winning their first Supercup since 2016. “I’ve won three trophies with the national team, but I haven’t won anything with a club yet so I’m going to give it my all and so are my team-mates. We’re going to give it everything on the field and that’ll help the outcome.

“We were losing (against Juventus) so when you come on you want to change the game – you want to go for it because you need to go for it, and you want to attack more. You need to take the game to them and that’s what I wanted to do really.

Yunus Musah of AC Milan holds off Andrea Cambiaso of Juventus during the Italian Super Cup Semi-Final match between AC Milan and Juventus at Al Awwal Park on January 03, 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Abdullah Ahmed/Getty Images)

“I’m very pleased and very happy to come back and win 2-1, it was amazing. I just want to win the final, that’s all I care about. I don’t mind if I play or don’t play, we just need to win.”

With Inter going for a record four Supercup wins in succession – the past three clinched in Riyadh, including the 3-0 victory over Milan in 2022 – claiming silverware will require a top performance from the Rossoneri.

Inter could have comfortably racked up more than the 2-0 scoreline with which they beat Atalanta in Riyadh on Thursday in the competition’s other semi-final, achieved through a double from Dutch defender Denzel Dumfries.

Musah, however, has an added incentive to win in Saudi Arabia; as a devout Muslim, the 22-year-old, signed in the summer of 2023 from Valencia, says it is a hugely special feeling playing football in the Kingdom. In football-passionate Saudi Arabia, some 80% of the population either play, attend, or follow football.

“This is my third time here in Saudi Arabia,” says Musah. “I’ve been to go to Mecca before. It’s been a great experience; I love the country and I love the people. It’s a beautiful country.”