Paulo Fonseca believes he ‘deserved more time’ at AC Milan | OneFootball

In an interview with The Athletic, Olympique Lyonnais coach Paulo Fonseca expressed his belief that he “deserved more time” on the AC Milan bench.

Appointed in the summer of 2024 as Stefano Pioli’s successor at the helm of the Rossoneri, the Portuguese coach, who was coming off a successful spell at Lille OSC, never really managed to impose his style at Milan. So much so that only seven months after settling in, it was already time for him to leave. A premature end to his adventure, but one that does not prevent Fonseca from retaining fond memories of his experience at San Siro.

“Milan is an amazing club and I enjoyed it a lot,” he said. “I’m really sorry I didn’t have time — their proposal was to change the game (to a more expansive style). To change one thing they had for so many years is not easy; you need time, especially in Italy, where it’s even more difficult, almost impossible.”

“We had amazing games, playing really good football. We needed to be more consistent, it’s true, but to change something in Italy is really difficult.”

Eighth in Serie A at the time of his dismissal, Fonseca had only managed 24 matches on the Milan bench, recording 12 wins, six draws and as many defeats.

GFFN | Léo Aschi