Gandini, Seedorf talk about AC Milan coming to DC, and much more
By: Craig Stouffer
Examiner Staff Writer
04/30/10 10:20 AM EDT
Highlights from a conference call this morning with D.C. United and AC Milan, including Milan organizing director Umberto Gandini and midfielder Clarence Seedorf.
More pressing, of course, is the status of AC Milan coach Leonardo. Is he on his way out? Who will coach AC Milan when they come to North America?
Gandini: Our season finishes on the 16th of May, but it regularly finishes on June 30, and there will be no decision taken in any case before that date. As far as the tour in the U.S., regardless of the situation of the coaching staff, our coach, Leonardo, has to go and finish off his coaching course with the Italian federation. That is the day after the end of the season in Italy so the 17th of May, Leonardo will have to go into our technical center to do the final examinations in part for his certificate, therefore Mauro Tossatti will be our coach during the course of the tour."
Gandini, on the players that Milan will bring: "As far as we are concerned, the number of players that we are going to be missing is not going to be that big to depreciate team our team of our stars. Clarence is one example. Filippo Inzaghi is another. Ronaldinho, [Alexandre] Pato. There are so many players who are at present not involved in the World Cup selection, so even if the final selection will be done at the beginning of May, but we count on a team of stars that can definitely bring a good show together, and I think when [D.C. United president] Kevin [Payne] and I talked about that, we knew exactly that we were going to put an entertaining pool together more than just a football game."
On the potential for fatigue given the end of the Serie A season: "We will finish off our season on the 16th of May. The game in Washington will be ten days later. We will probably be traveling out from Europe around the 23rd so I think we will have time to recover and to be fresh enough to play at a very good level."
Seedorf on Oguchi Onyewu: "He’s been unlucky, but we have become good friends. I think he potential is a great defender for AC Milan in the long term, and I really wish for him to have a great world Cup where he can the tone for his next season with us. He is on a mission. I told him he is on a mission. He can be one of the first American player to really make it at the highest level with a big team, a big club like AC Milan. I know he’s very much concentrating his focus on getting in great shape. He’s doing well so let’s hope he can help his team, the U.S. team, during the World Cup, to play a good World Cup."
On the Dutch team's chances at the World Cup: "The Dutch team is always a good team and always have performed well, not winning, so that’s always the question mark. But there a lot of great players there. We have three of them playing in the final of the Champions League this year so they’ll have that value for their team, and I think the Dutch is a team to watch, always. They are not my favorites. I don’t think a Dutch team can be favorites. We have never really won anything, but because of the talent the Dutch team has, it’s a team that needs to be respected, and we’ll see how they will perform."