Milan have everything to lose – Gattuso worried about complacency

AC Milan coach Gennaro Gattuso is concerned about complacency ahead of their Europa League round of 32 second leg with Ludogorets, wary of having “everything to lose”.

The Italian giants take a commanding 3-0 lead back to San Siro following last week’s first leg in Bulgaria – Patrick Cutrone, Ricardo Rodriguez and Fabio Borini getting the goals.

That win put one foot into the last 16, but Gattuso is being very careful about putting across such ideas to his players.

Gattuso feels he has to “convince” his players the game will not be easy, highlighting the fact Ludogorets travel to Milan with nothing to lose.

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“We will work on the technical and tactical aspects of the match [on Wednesday],” Gattuso told reporters in his pre-match news conference

“My biggest concern is that we underestimate our opponents. I must convince the boys that it won’t be easy.

“The 0-3 in the last game can be misleading. We must respect Ludogorets, they have more than one strong player who can give us a lot of trouble and, unlike them, we have everything to lose.

“We don’t dare to think about Friday’s draw or to go all the way in Europa League. We just focus on the match.”

It was put to Gattuso that youngster Cutrone has been involved a lot in recent weeks and co
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uld potentially suffer from fatigue, but the coach is adamant the attacker is fine and he also saluted the attitude of Andre Silva, whose adaptation has been difficult since joining from Porto.

“Cutrone is 20 years old,” Gattuso added. “It’s different when you’re that young, in terms of recovery.

“He’s playing a lot, but on Tuesday he was not part of the group that worked separately. He trained at full speed. He is in good condition.

“Andre Silva trains so hard that sometimes you need to stop him. He is always one of the last players to leave Milanello.

“What we saw in the last 20 minutes against Sampdoria is the real Andre Silva. He will soon score and that will help him to relax.”