"The worst in 13 years of coaching": Conceição criticizes Milan players after Cagliari draw

In his first match at San Siro as AC Milan head coach, Sérgio Conceição failed to secure a win, as the Rossoneri were held to a 1-1 draw against Cagliari. The Portuguese coach didn’t hide his disappointment with his players during the post-match press conference.

Details: Conceição admitted that, given the squad he had at his disposal, the first half was the worst he has experienced in his 13-year coaching career. He emphasized that the team lacked pace and creativity.

Quote: "I expected much more in every aspect. Considering the quality of the squad at my disposal, the first half was probably the worst of my 13-year coaching career, to be honest.

We lacked liveliness; the tempo was too slow. Cagliari defended in numbers in the final third—it was their strategy—but we should have executed what we had prepared to find spaces.

We weren’t smart enough to do that. The second half was better; we had 25 shots on goal. Cagliari started wasting time—I understand that’s part of the strategy in Italy, and it’s not an issue, but the referee should have added more than five minutes of stoppage time.

That’s no excuse, nor is the fatigue from the Super Cup. We should have done more, but these are still factors I cannot ignore," Conceição said.