“Kevin, compared to the other signings, comes from a different reality. He spent years at City and played at the very highest level,” the coach said.
“I have nothing to say to him, he’s a very good lad and he works hard. I understand his desire to play, but there are also substitutions. I want to win and if I make them, it’s with the intention of improving the team.
“Then it’s normal that in the media they are discussed depending on the results – the important thing is that everyone gives their all for the team.”
“We have two paths.
“Either we continue on this path with four midfielders, as I think we should because we have great room for improvement, or we can play with a 4-3-3 as we did at the end of the game tonight, perhaps alternating between a more physical midfield and a more technical one in which De Bruyne can play as a mezzala. The important thing is that everyone sacrifices themselves in both phases.”
“To me, the performance in Milan didn’t displease me at all,” Conte said, “but the two goals came from situations where we could have done better. We’ve talked about how to improve. When it comes to the negative aspects, you have to be constructive and try to work on them.”
“Today I see a very mature team in terms of game management. But we mustn’t lose the characteristics we had, the aggression and the fear, because healthy fear makes you run back. We try to push forward, but when we get bypassed, we must immediately recover.”