Age no bar
Italy legend Franco Baresi tells XPRESS that AC Milan are not yet over the hill
Dubai: For someone who will be celebrating his 50th birthday in less than two months' time, Franco Baresi still looks like he could give a few of the current AC Milan defenders a run for their money.
He is one man the Rossoneri would have wished was still playing given the way Milan's defence fell apart against Manchester United during their 7-2 aggregate defeat in the Champions League last 16.
But talk to him about Milan's failings in defence and the man who spent his entire 20-year club career at the heart of AC Milan's backline believes there's no need to press the panic button yet, despite criticism that Milan have been running on old legs for quite some time now.
Speaking to XPRESS on the sidelines of the Emirates Dubai Football 7s, the winner of six Scudetti (Serie A championships) and three European Cups said through an interpreter: "I played till I was 37. And honestly, I don't think age is a problem with this team unlike what people say. They are still in with a real good chance of winning the league."
Asked what went wrong in the Champions League against the Red Devils, especially in the second leg, Baresi said: "We had a good first match in Milano. We started off really well, but missed too many chances which reflected in the 2-3 scoreline.
"In the second leg, I think there were too many mistakes in defence. They left too many gaps and Manchester United were able to capitalise on it," added the Milan loyalist who, along with protege Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Costacurta and Mauro Tassotti formed arguably the greatest ever defensive line-up at the club for the best part of a decade.
But it was not just the defence, according to Baresi. "Actually, the team failed as a whole. They didn't apply enough pressure even when they had the upper hand," he said.
Understandably, the knives are out for coach Leonardo after that defeat and this despite the fact that they are breathing down the neck of their arch-rivals Inter Milan in Serie A. But Baresi refused to admonish either the coach or the players.
"There's nothing wrong with the coach's tactics or the players. This team has a lot of quality. It's just that they have been playing a lot of games and they looked a bit tired, especially in the second leg against Manchester United," he said.
