Ruben Amorim praised Milan’s character after their 2-0 win at Udinese, saying he was “really happy” and “really proud” of a side that responded strongly following a difficult run of performances.
The Rossoneri had been under pressure after Thursday’s 3-0 Europa League defeat away to Bournemouth, where they played with 10 men for more than an hour. They made the ideal start in Udine when Luka Modric quickly took a free-kick to release Christian Pulisic behind the defence.
Omari Hutchinson then scored his first goal for the club, converting the rebound after Ardon Jashari’s effort had been saved. Goncalo Ramos also went close, seeing his shot pushed on to the crossbar by Maduka Okoye.
Milan controlled the match despite tiring after the interval, although Ruben Loftus-Cheek was forced off in the closing stages after picking up an injury.
“I am really happy for them and really proud, because everything we talked about before the game, being competitive from the first minute, I think we did that today,” Amorim told DAZN Italia.
“Even when we got tired in the second half, we controlled the game, so I am really happy with the team. Now we have to think about the next game.”
Milan made several changes because of a lengthy injury list that included Adrien Rabiot, Diego Moreira, Mario Gila, Samuel Chukwueze, Matteo Gabbia, Alexis Saelemaekers and Pietro Terracciano.
Sankhoun Diawara and Fikayo Tomori made their first Serie A starts of the season, while Davide Bartesaghi was used in a more advanced position as Milan continue to develop their squad options.
“With the schedule in Europe, it’s impossible, because every game there’s a new muscular injury,” said Amorim.
He added that players had to be ready to contribute, not only to help the team win its next fixture but also to support Milan’s longer-term development.
“They need to play, they need to have the opportunity and feel that they are important,” he said. “They need to work really hard. We have a lot of injuries today, and they showed they are ready to cope with the pressure of playing for this club.”
Amorim was particularly pleased with Bartesaghi’s attacking contribution, but believes the defender still has work to do without the ball.
“Bartesaghi did really well today. I think he is better offensively than defensively,” he said. “He needs to improve his defensive side and be more aggressive one against one.
“He crosses really well, his finishing has quality in training, and he needs to get in the box more often. My problems with Bartesaghi are more defensively than offensively.”
Milan remain unbeaten in Serie A and, despite dropping several points this season, have moved level with Roma on 18 points in joint third place.
Amorim said the team had been forced to learn during matches and through video analysis because injuries and the fixture schedule had left little time for training.
He was also asked who he expected to win the Ballon d’Or tomorrow, but focused instead on Milan’s midweek match against Bologna.
“If it’s not a Milan player, I don’t care! I just worry about who survives to play in two days,” he replied.
