Amorim: ‘No minimum targets, Milan have to win, can’t rely on just 14 players’

Amorim: ‘No minimum targets, Milan have to win, can’t rely on just 14 players’ Ruben Amorim says that he does not believe in the concept of setting minimum targets at a big club like Milan, as he considers anything less than a victory, regardless of the opponent, to be a failure. The Rossoneri head coach sat down for his customary pre-match press conference on Tuesday ahead of the team’s first Europa League fixture of the 2026-27 season at home against Benfica. “It’s a big opportunity, it’s our first game. It’s an historic match against Benfica at a strong European level,” Amorim told reporters during his pre-match press conference on Tuesday (via TMW ). Ruben Amorim smiles at his first Milan press conference (acmilan.com) “Rui Costa, one of Milan’s legends, will be there. I also played for Benfica, but the biggest thing is that it’s our first game in this tournament.” Can Milan win the Europa League in 2026-27? Some have Milan among the pre-tournament favourites to go on and win the trophy this year. “We’re in the competition and we want to win,” Amorim admitted. “It’s difficult to look at the tournament and say whether we’re among the big favourites or not. I think there are lots of great teams and a lot of them will have a chance of getting to the final. MILAN, ITALY – AUGUST 28: Ruben Amorim, Head Coach of AC Milan, reacts during the Serie A match between AC Milan and Venezia FC at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on August 28, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images) “What I know is that to reach the final and be competitive in the league, we need to have a strong squad. And with a strong squad, there will often have to be rotation, so everyone has to be ready. “If we don’t get too many injuries and if all of our players stay focused and involved until the end of the season, we can win any game. Therefore, I would say that our goal is clearly to try and win this competition.” Milan are coming into the Benfica match off the back of a 2-2 draw away against Lazio in Serie A. There were concerning elements of the first-half performance, but Amorim earned praise for his half-time substitutions, which helped overturn a 2-0 deficit. Reviewing the Lazio draw, Amorim said: “I watched the game and made my assessments like everyone else. We played completely differently in the second half, but I don’t like to speak about individuals. I think it wasn’t just the substitutions that transformed the team because lots of the players who started the first half did a lot better in the second half as well. I think it’s more a question of team dynamics and energy rather than swapping two or three players around. ROME, ITALY – SEPTEMBER 12: Diego Moreira of AC Milan scores the team’s second goal during the Serie A match between SS Lazio and AC Milan at Stadio Olimpico on September 12, 2026 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Paolo Bruno/Getty Images) “Of course, you might think ‘we ended the game well, so we should start the next one with the same XI’, but I don’t look at it like that because every game is different. Some players haven’t done the preparation and I have to manage them because we have three games a week ahead of us as well as a big match at the weekend. That said, the next game is always the most important one. “But what I took away from the Lazio game is that it wasn’t two or three players that transformed the team, because the team itself played differently. We have to match this energy and play expressive, positive football.” Amorim explains Modric ‘problem’, but points to Moreira progress One of the players that was sacrificed at half-time against Lazio was Ballon d’Or winner Luka Modric, who had an uncharacteristically poor game at the Stadio Olimpico. ROME, ITALY – SEPTEMBER 12: Luka Modric of AC Milan in action during the warm up before the Serie A match between SS Lazio and AC Milan at Stadio Olimpico on September 12, 2026 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Paolo Bruno/Getty Images) “To make Luka feel comfortable in the game, we need to have long spells of possession,” Amorim explained. “I remember seeing maybe seven misplaced passes without any real pressure, then we lose the ball and it becomes a running game. That’s not the sort of game that Luka plays. “Therefore, to field a player like Luka, we have to have someone who is very capable with the ball at their feet. That’s the idea when Luka plays. We want him in certain games and certain situations. “What I would say, though, is that a week ago after the Juventus game, everybody said that Moreira wasn’t ready, that he played badly and wasn’t able to do anything. A week later, we’re saying that Moreira is the hero of Milan. That’s football. “I wouldn’t make any hasty conclusions about Luka’s performance. He’s a Ballon d’Or winner, we know his value. Luka is a great player in our team and will help us throughout the season. I don’t make definitive judgments on players from one week to the next.” Amorim went on to hint that summer signing Omari Hutchinson could feature against Benfica. Omari Hutchinson has joined AC Milan from Nottingham Forest on loan with option to buy (acmilan.com) “He’s ready to play, he could start from the first minute, we’ll see tomorrow. I don’t want to reveal the starting XI because Marco [Silva] is a smart guy and he’s definitely watching the press conference. He’s an option.” Portuguese journalists asked Amorim, who spent almost a decade on Benfica’s books, whether he had ever been close to returning as a head coach. He replied: “I wouldn’t have gone to coach in Portugal. My decision was to stop and take a year off with my family, which I have been promising for the last four years now. That was very clear, but then I received a call from Milan. I had a talk with the owners and they convinced me to come back earlier than expected. “I wouldn’t have gone back to work in Portugal. Milan came in and I don’t think any other offer would have made me go back into work because I was determined to have a break and I needed it. But Milan showed up and then I made my decision.” Amorim was also asked if he has a clear idea in his mind as to his strongest Milan XI after four competitive matches of the 2026-27 season. He said: “Every coach has a general idea in mind about the basics of their starting XI. But then the problem we were talking about pops up [referring to having to play multiple games a week in different competitions]. “It’s impossible to think about winning competitions by only counting on 11 or 14 players. As a result, I find it difficult to say that we have one XI. The idea isn’t about having a fixed team, but a system where all players can play and we don’t lose too much quality. JAKARTA, INDONESIA – AUGUST 08: Head coach Ruben Amorim of AC Milan looks on during the pre-season friendly between Chelsea FC and AC Milan at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium on August 08, 2026 in Jakarta, Indonesia. (Photo by Peksi Cahyo/Getty Images) “Naturally, I have an idea about which players I want in certain matches, but moments can change quickly. Who would have thought that Musah would be the starter and Luka Modric the ‘problem’? Nobody. The situation has changed because that’s what the last few games have shown. It’s difficult to talk about the concept of ‘the XI’ in modern football because I think you really need a whole group, a full squad to win trophies.” Amorim also made it clear that he has not set any minimum targets for Milan this season, as he considers anything less than a victory, regardless of the game, to be a failure. “For big clubs, and Milan is a big club, there are no minimum goals. Whatever the result, if you don’t win, you [journalists] will be here criticising the team and saying that it’s not enough. That’s my experience. I experienced it in Portugal as well, when you don’t get to a final or if you don’t win, it’s a failure. “Everyone in Portugal says Benfica has to win the Europa League. It’s normal. Either you win or you don’t. If we don’t win, we are considered not enough for everyone. “Therefore, I don’t want to be the coach who sets the quarter-final or the semi-final as a goal. That doesn’t matter. What matters is that we have one goal, and that is to win. Anything less will bring us criticism, because that’s the price you pay as the coach of Milan. “It’s nor an economic issue, because the Europa League doesn’t compare to the Champions League, but it counts for our pride and our identity.”