Milan, Gazidis: ‘Maldini is fundamental. Players ready for anything for Pioli. Stadium? Optimistic’

In a little over a month, if the rumors that have been running for some time are confirmed, Ivan Gazidis will leave his chair as CEO in via Aldo Rossi. A journey that lasted four years and coincided with the sporting and financial rebirth of Milan. The Rossoneri manager spoke to Espn, addressing various issues where past, present and future intertwine.

On the Milan he found

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“It wasn’t a comfortable or low-pressure option. At the same time, I believed in the possibility. Milan is one of the great football teams in the world and I thought that something new could be brought to Italian football. There were a lot of heavy contracts, almost too many to name, players who cost a lot like Bonucci for example. They had renewed Gianluigi Donnarumma, an excellent goalkeeper, but with a huge contract to keep him. Some contracts were too high in relation to the performance of these players on the pitch. There were probably 10 different examples of players who fell into that category. And players, when overpaid for their performance, are really hard to give. The goal is to spend effectively and efficiently. The youth project? We faced a lot of skepticism about youth politics, especially at Milan. I think that Italy in general is skeptical about giving young people a chance, Milan even more because of the pressure from the public and the San Siro environment that has the reputation of crushing them “.

On Maldini

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“Maldini is fundamental in the negotiations, he talks with the players to understand how they think and what motivates them. We call it our point of reference. He talks to the agent as a first contact, then directly with the player, along with Massara. Theo is a good example, Paolo took him under his wing. He can still be seen today. He is not pushy in the manager’s territory but he always has a word for each player. Theo looks to Paolo almost as a second father, Paolo has that relationship with different players ”.

On the exclusion from the cups

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“That was probably the low point. Taking a disqualification for a club whose reputation is built on the Champions League was a very difficult thing to accept. But Milan had never been thought of as a business before. Milan is one of the giants of football. It just needs to be brought back to life. I think we are doing it, but we are only at the end of the beginning ”.

On Pioli

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“The team had a technical guide (Giampaolo, ed) that was not working and therefore we had to make a change. Something grew within the group during the lockdown, even though they weren’t physically together, somehow they just bonded and Stefano got to know them really well. A bit like Paolo Maldini, Pioli also wants to understand players as people and cares about them. This makes them ready to do everything for him ”.

About Ibra, Kjaer and Leao

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“Ibra and Kjaer have contributed a lot to the rebirth of Milan. They arrived and gave their broad shoulders to the young people. Ibra never accepts less than 110% from anyone at any time. We had actually tried to bring him back to Milan a year earlier, but he felt that the time was not yet right. He was playing with LA Galaxy and wanted to do another year there. I think our environment was the perfect challenge for him. Leao didn’t have an easy time here in the beginning. He didn’t play and when he did his performances were made of ups and downs, he needed some time. He had that time and support. We have not changed our plan ”.

On the stadium

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“We have a large privately funded project that I spent a lot of time on in my first year, but it got bogged down in Italian politics and bureaucracy. But now we see the light at the end of the tunnel. We already have the approval for the stadium, there are a couple of steps that we are going through with a public debate. I am very optimistic that the project will start next year with all the approvals. This country is a sleeping giant. The football teams here are huge because of the history, the culture they represent. Italian football has gone through a difficult period, but I am absolutely convinced that in 10 years it will flourish, it will be played in modern stadiums. What we will do will have an impact not only on Milan as a club, not only on Milan as a city, but on Italy as a country “.