Paulo Fonseca saluted AC Milan's "courage" during their 3-1 victory over reigning Champions League winners Real Madrid.

Malick Thiaw, Alvaro Morata and Tijjani Reijnders were on target as the Rossoneri condemned Madrid to successive home defeats for the first time under their former boss Carlo Ancelotti.

Milan became the first side in the history of the competition to score three times against Los Blancos at Santiago Bernabeu on two occasions, also achieving the feat in October 2009.

And Fonseca was delighted at the way the players executed his game plan, which he acknowledged was slightly different to normal.

"We won because the players had the courage to come here and not be afraid of anything, playing the game we wanted," he told reporters during his post-match press conference.

"We prepared for a match in which we wanted to keep the ball. In the first half, we did important things and, in the second half, we suffered more. But we deserved to win, no doubt about it.

"Today, we showed that an Italian team came to the Bernabeu to play and not to defend alone. We can still grow a lot. I have to be honest. This type of game is totally different to what we have in Serie A. 

"In Italy, perhaps, we don't have the chance to play with this aggressiveness. I don't think it's possible to do what we did today. Here, there are no teams that press man-to-man all over the pitch."

Paulo Fonseca believes Milan's early-season rhythm has been disrupted following the late postponement of their Serie A fixture at Bologna last weekend. 

The match, scheduled to take place at the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara on Saturday, was postponed 24 hours before kick-off after heavy rain and flooding in the region.

After failing to win their first three league matches, Milan have since taken 12 points from their next five games, propelling them up the standings after a difficult start. 

But with the Rossoneri not in action over the weekend, they dropped to eighth in the Serie A table ahead of facing leaders Napoli on Tuesday.

"It was tricky to manage this moment. On the eve of the game, we trained without knowing whether we’d play or not the following day," Fonseca said. 

"We wanted to play, and I think we’ve been affected by not playing in this match."

Napoli come into the game on the back of a 1-0 triumph over Lecce, with Giovanni Di Lorenzo's 73rd minute strike sealing a seventh win of the campaign. 

Antonio Conte's side are now unbeaten in their last eight league games, their best run since a run of eight straight wins in February 2023 under Luciano Spalletti.

They have also kept five clean sheets in their last six games, as many as in their previous 34 Serie A matches. 

"As the table shows, Napoli are a strong team at a good moment. They are the table leaders and will be motivated to face us," Fonseca said.

"We are also motivated to play this match against a very strong team that has won games comfortably."

Milan, however, have won just one of their last nine meetings against Napoli whent he fixture has been played in the first half of a Serie A campaign (D2 L6). 

Despite his side's league position after nine games so far, Fonseca believes Milan can win a 20th Scudetto title under his guidance.

"The fans must believe because we are a strong team and we are improving. We think we can fight for the Scudetto," he said.

Paulo Fonseca believes Milan have shown "signs of growth" in the Champions League, as he looks to get their first win against Club Brugge on Tuesday.

Milan faced Liverpool and reigning Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen in their opening two games in the competition, losing the first 3-1 at home and the latter 1-0.

They were outplayed in their opener, managing just two shots on target from eight efforts, compared to Liverpool's 11 from 23, with the Reds also racking up 3.09 expected goals (xG) to Milan's 0.61.

Fonseca's side put on a better show at the BayArena against Leverkusen, and the Portuguese head coach hopes they can translate that into a victory in what is almost a must-win match.

"We started against two of the strongest teams in Europe right now. They were two different games," he told reporters.

"Difficulties against Liverpool, quality against Leverkusen, especially in the second half. We didn't win, but we showed signs of growth.

"We have to continue to grow in this competition, and we want to win if we want to have a chance to continue. It's not decisive, but it is important, we have to win."

Fonseca also confirmed Rafael Leao and Theo Hernandez will return to the starting line-up after missing Saturday's Serie A match against Udinese.

Hernandez was suspended for that game after his red card in the 2-1 defeat at Fiorentina, while the winger was dropped to the bench after that loss, which left Fonseca furious.

Samuel Chukwueze, who scored the winner against Udinese, is set to be among the substitutes against Brugge as Fonseca took the unusual step of naming his line-up.

"They will play tomorrow from the first minute," he added.

"I expect from them what I expect from everyone, that they give their best to help Milan win. It's a normal situation, even for them. And tomorrow they play."

"I will tell you straight away [Tuesday's] team. Mike Maignan, Emerson Royal, Matteo Gabbia, Fikayo Tomori, Hernandez, Youssouf Fofana, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Tijani Reijnders, Leao, Christian Pulisic, Alvaro Morata."

Milan have a shortage of strikers. Tammy Abraham went off injured minutes after coming onto the pitch on Saturday, while Luka Jovic was not included in the Champions League squad.

Francesco Camarda has been called up from the youth squad and if he were to come on and score at 16 years and 226 days, he would become the youngest-ever scorer in the competition.

"This is not a normal situation to have Abraham and Jovic out," Fonseca said. "Normally we always have solutions, plus we have Camarda in whom we believe a lot. I don't think we need other players in this position."

AC Milan boss Paulo Fonseca has had two weeks to stew on his team's latest defeat, and he will never refrain from criticising a player due to their name or status.

Milan were beaten 2-1 by Fiorentina before the international break, a defeat that came on the back of losing 1-0 to Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League.

It was the manner of their defeat in Florence, where Theo Hernandez and Tammy Abraham were both denied by David de Gea from the penalty spot, which left Fonseca furious.

Fonseca slated his players for disobeying orders after the game, pointing out that Christian Pulisic was the designated penalty taker, while he was also furious to see Hernandez sent off for dissent late on. 

Speaking ahead of Saturday's meeting with Udinese, Fonseca told reporters: "I was so angry after Florence that it was good not to have seen anyone.

"We had few players in those training sessions, then all the internationals arrived yesterday. We talked about the match against Fiorentina and today we spoke about Udinese.

"I know that there has been a lot of talk about Florence, for me it was very important to talk about it."

Fonseca is already under pressure, with his side sixth in the Serie A table, five points off leaders Napoli. Milan have also lost both of their Champions League games, and their coach intends to tackle any issues head on.

"I don't close my eyes to problems. We have them, let's face them," Fonseca said.

"If we have any problems, I don't give a damn about the player's name. I talk to him. Frontally, directly, with the team or with the players.

"For me, no player is more important than the team. Those who make mistakes must take responsibility. If someone doesn't follow this team spirit, it's difficult for me."

Fonseca was then asked if he had already lost control of the dressing room, responding: "I don't have to demonstrate anything, I'm not an actor.

"In football today there is a great need to be seen, I'm not like that, since day one. Ask the players, if I have been this way from the start or not."

AC Milan boss Paulo Fonseca was in an angry mood following his side's 2-1 loss away to Fiorentina on Sunday, suggesting the decisions to give three penalties turned the game into a 'circus'.

Remarkably, all three spot-kicks were saved during the match. The home side initially saw Moise Kean's penalty kept out by Mike Maignan, while David de Gea then saved from Theo Hernandez - who was later sent off - and Tammy Abraham either side of half-time.

But after the game, Fonseca's attention was on the performance of the officials rather than the goalkeeping.

"I don’t like to talk about refereeing but this isn’t football. Football is about contact and a mere touch shouldn’t be enough to award a penalty," he told DAZN.

"Just a simple touch can lead to a penalty, we saw that this weekend as well. It makes everyone nervous, and that creates problems. This is football, not a circus."

Interestingly, neither Hernandez nor Abraham is Milan's designated penalty taker despite them taking the responsibility on Sunday.

"Our penalty taker is [Christian] Pulisic. I don't know why the players changed their minds, I spoke to him and said that it must not happen again," said Fonseca.

Pulisic did score Milan's only goal of the night, having equalised after an hour, before Albert Gudmondsson scored the winner for the hosts.

The United States international was visibly angry when brought off for Samuel Chukwueze with seven minutes to go after putting in a bright performance, but the Milan manager explained that he did not want to aggravate an injury.

"It was out of caution for Pulisic, he had a problem with his flexor during the week. Chukwueze came in well and created opportunities," said Fonseca.

In terms of his side's overall performance, Fonseca did not want to focus on their penalty problems and instead suggested they did not do enough to get anything from the match.

"In the first half, we lacked defensive aggression and strength in duels. The way we conceded goals clearly illustrates this; they almost always won the second balls," he said. "We weren't disciplined in our structure."

The defeat ended a run of three straight league victories for Milan, meaning they go into the international break sixth in the table and on the back of a defeat.

Despite that, and the gap to league leaders Napoli extending to six points, he was not panicking.

"In Italy when you win, you’ve played a great match. If we don’t score, we’re the worst team in the world, just as I’m the worst coach. I know how things are," he said.

Fonseca's assessment of the performance was mirrored by defender Matteo Gabbia, who was unhappy with how the game went.

"We are certainly not satisfied with the initial approach. We feel this defeat, as it was our fault and we did not do our best tonight," he said.

"It starts with us, I saw the right disappointment and anger in the dressing room and it can be the only positive from this very negative night. We are angry that we put in this performance."

Paulo Fonseca warned his Milan side they to be "defensively perfect" to get a result at Bayer Leverkusen in Tuesday's Champions League clash.

Milan suffered a 3-1 home defeat to Liverpool in their European opener despite Christian Pulisic firing the Rossoneri into a third-minute lead.

The Serie A giants will be looking to get off the mark at the Bay Arena but head coach Fonseca said they must be flawless at the back.

"I don't think about changing (much), we need to have continuity. We know it's a different game, (but) I think it will be a similar game to the one against Liverpool," Fonseca told a press conference on Monday.

"Defensively I think the team has grown, it's a good test to see our defensive capabilities at the moment. I told the players that to beat a strong team like Leverkusen we need to make a defensively perfect team."

Xabi Alonso's Bundesliga champions began their campaign in Europe with a 4-0 win at Feyenoord but they have conceded 10 goals in their first five league games after letting in just 24 in 34 matches in the 2023-24 domestic season.

Seven-time European champions Milan, the only Italian side to triumph more than once in the Champions League era, are the top scorers in Serie A with 14 goals in six games this term.

"It is true that we have done well in the league in the last few games, but I have to say that Serie A is very different from these games we have in the Champions League," Fonseca said.

"Today I was made to read Xabi Alonso's words. When we talk about Italian teams, we always say the same thing - that (they) are good at defending and playing on the counter-attack. I would like other things to be said when we talk about Milan.

"We don't want to be like that. Tomorrow we will obviously defend because we will play against a very strong team, but when we have the ball we still want to play.

"I'm curious to see the team's behaviour in a different game to those we had in Serie A."

Milan may be without Spanish striker Alvaro Morata, who opened the scoring in their 3-0 home win against Lecce on Friday despite starting with a slight knock.

"He (Morata) made a big effort to play the last match," Fonseca said. "He is doubtful and we will manage him. Let's see how he is tomorrow. We don't want to take any risks." 

Paulo Fonseca praised Milan for their convincing 3-0 win over Lecce but is still hoping for improvements as they prepare for a return to the Champions League.

The Serie A win was secured with three quick-fire goals before the break, with Alvaro Morata, Theo Hernandez and Christian Pulisic all scoring during a five-minute spell. 

After a slow start to life in Milan, things look to be clicking into place under Fonseca, as the team had 15 shots, six of which were on target, and finished strong despite Davide Bartesaghi's late red card.

They secured a hard-fought 2-1 win over Inter last weekend, and have now won each of their last three Serie A matches for the first time since April.

"Today it was too important to win, after the derby there is always a state of euphoria," Fonseca told DAZN.

"The players played a serious match, it wasn't all perfect, but we had good moments and chances, and we didn't concede goals, which is always important.

"This team has to learn to play this type of game, our positional play has to be different.

"During the break, we talked about many details that need to be improved. We have to wait for the right moment, understand where the space is. It's important to improve this, the team has to learn to play like this... In the second half, we did better."

Fonseca chose to start with Tammy Abraham and Morata up front, with the latter scoring his second goal for the team.

"It was both a tactical [choice] and for their aggressiveness," Fonseca said.

"Morata's characteristics allow me to have him play this role of attacking midfielder, between the lines. With a forward like [Erling] Haaland you couldn't do it.

"Then I really like the energy they both bring, it's contagious for the team. Now I also see [Rafael] Leao working harder, also because he follows their example."

Milan travel to German champions Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League on Tuesday after opening the tournament with a 3-1 home defeat to Liverpool earlier this month.

"We immediately found the two teams that play better at the moment in Europe," Fonseca added.

"First Liverpool, now Leverkusen, who are the same as last year [or] maybe even better. We know it will be difficult."

Simone Inzaghi questioned the attitude of his Inter players after Milan snatched a 2-1 derby victory on Sunday.

Matteo Gabbia popped up with an 89th-minute header to snap Milan's six-game losing streak against their city rivals.

Christian Pulisic opened the scoring at San Siro, before Federico Dimarco equalised for Inter.

Inzaghi felt Inter were the better team, despite Milan having more shots (16 to 13) and accumulating a higher xG (1.7 to 0.7).

However, the Inter coach was left far from impressed with the attitude his players displayed.

"Of course Milan are a very good team. They did better than us this evening and deserved the victory," Inzaghi told DAZN.

"We had the wrong approach and weren't enough of a team, which is rare for us. We didn't start either half with the right attitude.

"It's unexpected, we had worked well over the last couple of days in training, but the approach was wrong in both halves.

"Now we've already dropped a few too many points in Serie A and this is particularly sore."

Milan boss Paulo Fonseca, meanwhile, claimed a much-needed victory early in his tenure, with the Portuguese coach having already come under scrutiny following an indifferent start to the campaign.

"It was an important match. First of all, because it’s a derby that Milan hadn't won in a long time. It was important given the moment we were going through," Fonseca told DAZN.

"I think the players showed a lot of courage and we deserved the win. I don't remember seeing a team that caused this many problems for Inter in a long time.

"It will be a week with a little more confidence, but the important thing for me is to continue seeing the players believe in our ideas, the way they have done so far.

"We know that we must improve, but this was a victory for the players today."

Paulo Fonseca believes Milan's Champions League opener against Liverpool is the perfect opportunity to show the team's progress under his stewardship. 

Fonseca, who arrived at the San Siro from Lille in July, picked up his first Serie A victory for the Rossoneri on Saturday with a 4-0 rout of Venezia. 

All four goals came in the first 30 minutes of that encounter, the first time Milan had done so in a league match since October 1958 against Alessandria. 

Milan welcome a familiar foe in the competition in Liverpool on Tuesday, with the pair having squared off in the 2005 and 2007 finals, both winning one apiece.

The Italian side also faced the Reds in the Champions League group stage in the 2021-22 season but lost on both occasions as Liverpool reached the showpiece match, only to lose 1-0 to Real Madrid.

But Liverpool come into the contest off the back of a shock 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest at the weekend, the first defeat of the Arne Slot era. 

However, Fonseca insisted that despite their opponents' latest result, his side must eradicate their own mistakes and be defensively perfect to kickstart their campaign with a victory. 

"I think Liverpool is one of the strongest teams in Europe. They have a good game and strong individuals," Fonseca said.

"We have to be perfect defensively, you cannot make mistakes.

"I see it as an opportunity to show our progress. It will lead us to do different things... but also to prove our worth.

"I am sure it will. The support of our fans is always important for us. Tomorrow it will be like that, we want to feel their love."

Milan's new signing and Euro 2024 winning captain, Alvaro Morata, is also expecting a difficult test against Liverpool on Tuesday. 

Morata returned to action as a second half substitute against Venezia after missing two games with a back injury after marking his debut with a goal against Torino. 

The Spaniard also has an impressive record against Liverpool, failing to lose in his five appearances against them (won three and drawn two) while also scoring once. 

"It will be a great challenge, we have so many different players, and we have to fix so many mechanisms, only time will tell," Morata said.

"Ever since you arrive at a club like this you dream of playing with Liverpool in the Champions League, it could even be a semi-final, it's strange that we play right away.

"There is so much desire. These are the games that make sporting history." 

Paulo Fonseca believes Milan gained a much-needed confidence boost from their 4-0 win over Venezia with big clashes against Liverpool and Inter coming up.

The 51-year-old had already come under pressure after a lacklustre start to life at Milan, with two draws and a defeat in their opening three games.

However, a comfortable home victory over Venezia eased some of that, as Milan scored four goals in the opening 30 minutes of a match for the first time since October 1958.

"Our season already started four rounds ago, we dropped points and need to recover lost ground, but it was important to win and to win like this. It gives the players confidence to keep growing," Fonseca told Sky Sports Italia.

While Saturday's victory offered some relief for the Portuguese coach, the real test awaits when Milan host Liverpool in their Champions League opener on Tuesday, followed by a derby against Inter next weekend.

"I have to be honest, I've already started thinking about both games against Liverpool and Inter. I realise the importance of the derby. Liverpool will be very difficult, but I cannot deny I have already started studying Inter, too," Fonseca said.

"I know what it means to the fans, we are working to have good performances in both matches."

Fonseca denied that recent protests from fans, including banners placed in the stands just before kick-off warning that things needed to turn around quickly, threw him off balance.

"I think as a coach that I have to deal with these situations with balance, stay focused on my work and ignore everything around us," he said.

"Milan is a club that always has the pressure to win. If we coaches don't want this pressure, then we shouldn’t be coaches."

After three games without a win, Paulo Fonseca's main focus is getting a first victory of the season against Venezia, without looking ahead to other big matches.

Fonseca is already under pressure, with Milan having collected only two points from three games, and with their first Champions League match at home to Liverpool on Tuesday followed by a derby clash with Inter next weekend, things could get even worse.

For now, though, the 51-year-old badly needs a win and, with the visit of Venezia to San Siro the priority, Fonseca has prepared his 14th-placed team to take on the promoted side, who have one point and are second-bottom in the standings.

"They [games] are all important, even more so at this time. I am confident, as always. It's important to win on Saturday, then we'll think about Liverpool," Fonseca told a press conference.

"Milan must always win, not just on Saturday. I looked at Venezia. They are a dangerous team on the counter-attack.

"Against Parma [2-1 defeat] we suffered, but against Lazio [2-2 draw] we improved a lot. The problem was defensive organisation. We worked on it. We know Venezia's strong point, and we are prepared."

Milan have conceded six goals in three games, with no other Serie A side allowing more so far this season, and the international break has given Fonseca time to work on their defensive problems.

"We didn't have many players during the break, but we had many defenders. We worked on the behaviour of the defensive line and on individual behaviour," he added.

"We have to improve on the many goals conceded. A team that doesn't want to concede goals must keep the ball more. We are working on it.

"The players understand the importance of keeping the ball and managing the game with the ball."

Fonseca is well aware of the scrutiny he is under after the poor start to the season, but the real pressure comes from the fans, who will again be there supporting Milan on Saturday.

"We coaches always are [under scrutiny], we depend on the results. But I'm just focused on my work," Fonseca said.

"After these first three games, having 70,000 supporters is a great declaration of love.

"It's also a big responsibility for us, to keep evolving and make the fans proud of us. That's what we want to do tomorrow, repay the support of our fans."

Paulo Fonseca was quick to dismiss talk of any tension with Rafael Leao and Theo Hernandez, who both appeared to snub him shortly after coming off the bench.

The pair came off the bench to help earn a 2-2 draw with Lazio on Saturday, being brought on in a quadruple change by Fonseca after being left out of the starting line-up. 

Milan were losing 2-1 at the time of their introduction, and they immediately turned things around, with Hernandez and debutant Tammy Abraham, another substitute, involved in Leao's equaliser.

Minutes later, the game stopped for a cooling break, with both managers using the opportunity to instruct their players, but both Leao and Hernandez remained on the far side of the pitch, taking no part in the team talk.

"The situation with Theo and Leao, there is no problem and I think Theo has already explained," Fonseca told DAZN.

"We don't need to create any problems. This week I spoke with the players and they accepted my decision. There is no problem, I was concentrated, and I didn't see that they weren't there."

Hernandez had already given his reasons immediately after the game.

"We had been on for two minutes, we didn't need the cooling break," Hernandez said.

"It was nothing against the team and the coach. Then people talk, say things that aren't true. Rafa and I are always with the team to help, and that is the important thing."

Milan are still without a league win this season after three games, but Fonseca says he saw a decent performance in the opening half, giving him something to work on.

"We had a good first half. We always managed the game well with the ball. When you control the game like this, we have to have more moments to become dangerous, but it's something we have to work on," Fonseca told Milan TV.

"We must always have the courage we had in the first half because we did good things. If we had won the other two games, this could have been a good result, but it is not so. But we have to start from today's first half."

Rafael Leao came off the bench to earn Milan a 2-2 draw with Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday, but Paulo Fonseca's side are still without a Serie A win this season.

Milan were in front at the break through Strahinja Pavlovic's eighth-minute goal, the Serbian rising highest to power home a header from Christian Pulisic's corner.

However, Lazio hit back in the second half with Valentin Castellanos and Boulaye Dia scoring in quick succession.

Nuno Tavares' first-time ball into the centre was met by the unmarked Castellanos to level in the 62nd minute, then Dia tapped another Tavares cutback home to put the Biancocelesti ahead four minutes later.

Fonseca reacted by sending on four substitutes, and those changes had a swift impact as three of them combined for the leveller. 

Theo Hernandez – who joined Leao in being dropped from the start – picked out Tammy Abraham, and his lay-off allowed Leao to escape Tavares to fire past Ivan Provedel.

The game was preceded by an emotional tribute to the man who led Lazio to their last league title, Sven-Goran Eriksson, who died at the age of 76 on Monday.

A Lazio shirt bearing the Swede's name was displayed on the home bench, while a banner held up by the home fans read: "You brought us to the top of the world... Have a good trip Mr. Sven."

Data Debrief: Milan's slow start continues

New Milan boss Fonseca is already under pressure after overseeing a return of two points from his first three league games at the helm.

It is the first time the Rossoneri have drawn two of their opening three matches in a Serie A season since 2011-12, when they also drew two and lost one, 

They went on to finish second that season, just four points adrift of champions Juventus. If a title challenge is to take place this term, rapid improvements are needed. 

Paulo Fonseca says Milan have been working hard in training after a poor start to the Serie A season and will be prepared to bounce back when they face Lazio.

The newly appointed head coach is already under pressure after a lacklustre start to the campaign, with a 2-2 draw against Torino on matchday one being followed by a disappointing 2-1 defeat to newly promoted Parma.

"We are aware that we haven’t started well. But we are all united and we want to find solutions. That’s what we’ve been doing this week," Fonseca told reporters.

"We are united so it’s easier to work. It was a good week and I think we understood where we really need to improve. I expect a different Milan tomorrow."

The Portuguese coach denied that some players were having trouble adapting to his tactical vision, with the Rossoneri's defensive efforts attracting particular criticism so far this season.

"I am as confident as I was during my unveiling press conference," he added.

"I am convinced these two games won’t diminish our ambition to become the team we aim to be."

Milan also discovered their opponents for the Champions League's new league phase this week and are set to face Bayer Leverkusen, Real Madrid and Liverpool after a daunting draw.

Fonseca, though, is pleased to have the chance to face top opponents, saying: "It was a balanced draw. All games will be competitive.

"It’s true we have Madrid, Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen, who are top sides, but there are other strong teams as well. It seems like a balanced draw and format.

"I really like the format because there are more games among top sides but it’s also an opportunity to bring these top sides to countries that are not traditionally strong in football." 

Paulo Fonseca is happy with Milan's acquisitions in the transfer window but warns that players will be leaving the club as they begin their Serie A campaign at home to Torino on Saturday.

The new Portuguese coach confirmed the signing of French midfielder Youssouf Fofana from Monaco is nearly complete, with no other recruitment planned.

He would join striker Alvaro Morata, and defenders Emerson Royal and Strahinja Pavlovic, who signed for Milan earlier in the window.

"After his [Fofana's] arrival, our incomings will be completed, we will need to focus on outgoings," Fonseca told reporters on Friday.

"Some players must leave now. We have many, and it's not easy to work with a lot of players.

"We work and play to aim for the top, we cannot say that we are ahead of everyone to win the league, but we want to be fighting for the Scudetto.

"Inter are reigning champions, we know their level. Juventus, Napoli and Atalanta, apart from ourselves, also have the right things to compete."

Fonseca has only been Milan's coach for two months but has overseen an unbeaten pre-season in that time, and he is pleased with how his players have adapted to his methods.

"I came to Milan at the right moment in my career," he added. "The feeling is very positive, right from the first day, we have already improved more than I expected.

"We are expecting a different and more complex game than those we have played in pre-season. We want to show our identity from the very first game."