Rino Gattuso and his Milan squad look for their second consecutive win as they take on Torino this weekend. A win would be big for the rossoneri squad, as it'll help them maintain their 4th place position in the standings and overcome their persistent challenges with injuries. Gattuso spoke to the press before the match:
On the duo of Higuain-Cutrone: "We will try and see if Higuain and Cutrone can play together, our greatest issue should be balance and holding the pitch well, we have to move well and sense danger. Torino is a team that combine technique and physical strength, always well put in place with a prepared coach. They know what to do and it's hard to deal with when they play away from home. Iago Falquè is similar to Suso, they even have the same physical build. He has different characteristics though, he uses his pace, knows how to beat his man, scores goals and is dangerous with free kicks, we have to be wary of him."
On third place and 'venom': "Are we pushing for third place? I'm not sure, it seems that more than a year has passed since we've been here. If there have been improvements it's because we need to stay on this path forward, with the desire to grow and improve. I've noticed this in many players, I want to see that desire, this venom."
On Higuain: "Even when everyone thinks he is upset, his smile in the locker room is always there, he likes to joke around. He hasn't scored in a month but also due to the suspension, the international break and the slight injury. He is a champ and never a problem for Milan. He cannot be fixated on goals. He needs to help the team and the team needs to help him."
On the squad's growth: "The pitch will tell us if we can play with everything the same, tomorrow we'll have a difficult challenge. We must pay attention, I think that we're on the right road mentally and as a group. It's normal to have to grow a lot, but we have leadership who wants to do the important things. If we put everything together and stay on the same path forward, great things could happen."
On injuries: "Romagnoli and Musacchio have began running again, we'll see next week. Mateo is 4-5 days ahead of Alessio."
On Paquetà and Ibra: "Paquetà arrives tomorrow, then he'll do his tests and be available in January. For questions on Ibra, ask Leonardo, Maldini and Gazidis. I need to think about Borini, who hurt his ankle."
On the growth of Calhanoglu: "He's a player who can always improve. I've really liked to see that he learned how to stay in the match. He's strong and physical. You all know what i think of him and i feel guilty for having fielded him even when he wasn't fully fit but he helped us a lot. We just have to thank him, i know he can do much more, he has pace, intelligence and can contribute more."
On the possibility of a new formation: "I would like to play in 3, we would do that. I've thought about Susa as a mezzala, we'll think about it and prepare for the match today."
On resigning Bakayoko: "I'm the manager and leadership knows the requests I make. This is an economic question, the club knows how much it can spend."
