Champions League a must for Milan, says Allegri
Massimiliano Allegri intends to treat the Serie A season as a marathon, rather than a sprint, but knows UEFA Champions League qualification is the minimum requirement for AC Milan.
Allegri is back with the Rossoneri for a second stint in charge 11 years after he was sacked by the club, having guided it to a Scudetto and a Supercoppa Italiana triumph during three-and-a-half years at the helm the first time around.
Milan will not participate in a continental competition this term after finishing eighth under Sergio Conceicao in 2024-2025, the first time it has failed to qualify for Europe in a decade, excluding 2019-2020, when it was banned over financial fair play issues having qualified for the UEFA Europa League.
Speaking on the eve of the Rossoneri's Serie A opener against newly promoted Cremonese at San Siro, Allegri outlined his expectations for the campaign ahead.
"I always say that in the league you have to move forward like you're on a cruise. You can't go too fast, but you must stay steady," he said.
"Next year, we all know Milan must return to the [UEFA] Champions League without setting limits for ourselves, and we can only achieve that by focusing on desire, hard work and attention to detail in training."
Milan beat Bari 2-0 in a home Coppa Italia tie last weekend, as Allegri oversaw his first competitive game as the Rossoneri's head coach since January 2014, but he knows a league fixture will be another matter entirely.
"Tomorrow, we start the season with an important match. I'm very curious, also because I'm returning to the touchline after a year away," he said.
"It was wonderful to see so many people in the Coppa Italia and tomorrow there will be 75,000 fans here.
"We need to work well and try to get to at least March in the best possible condition. I'm very happy with the players – this is a group that is becoming a real team."
Allegri handed Luka Modric his Milan debut from the bench in last week's game, with Christian Pulisic and Rafael Leao on target, but the latter did go off with an injury.
That forward duo is set to be given additional competition by Victor Boniface, who is expected to arrive from Bayer Leverkusen on loan with a purchase option, but Allegri would not discuss the Nigerian's imminent move.
"At the moment he is not a Milan player, so out of respect for the other club I won't comment," Allegri said of the striker.
