Amorim's Press Room Misstep Ahead of Milan vs Lazio

Rúben Amorim wanted to talk about growth, setbacks and how his AC Milan side must keep evolving. Instead, the Milan head coach found himself wincing at his own words.

At Friday’s press conference, on the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks in the United States, the Portuguese coach reached for a metaphor and instantly realised he had picked the worst possible one.

“We have to get better during every training session,” Amorim said, setting up a routine answer about improvement. Then came the comparison.

“It’s just like with plane crashes,” he continued. “That’s where you learn…”

He stopped, laughed nervously and immediately pulled back. “This is not a good comparison,” he admitted, clearly aware of the significance of the date.

The room felt the shift. Amorim tried to steady it.

“But you understand what I mean. If something goes wrong, we absorb all the information and apply it in training.”

From there, the focus moved back to football and to one of the brightest stories of Milan’s early season: Alphadjo Cissè.

The 19-year-old, who was close to a move to PSV last winter, has exploded into the new campaign. Two goals in his first three Serie A appearances for Milan, capped by a stunning strike against Juventus, have pushed his name into the national-team conversation.

Italian outlets report that Cissè has an excellent chance of earning his first call-up next week. Amorim did nothing to cool that talk.

“He is ready for it,” the coach said. “But he needs time to mature.”

Amorim has already spotted a split in the teenager’s performances.

“I saw a difference between his performances in away matches and at San Siro. San Siro is a difficult environment, so he has to adapt to all those small details.”

That, for Amorim, is the key. Not hype. Not rush. Time.

“Let’s give Cissè time,” he urged. “If he trains and plays with the national team, he will not be shy and will demand the ball. He is ready for it, but needs time to grow into the player he can be. He still has a lot to learn.”

Milan head to Lazio with a coach who knows he chose one terrible analogy, and a teenager who keeps offering the best kind of answer: performances that force everyone to take notice.