Sérgio Conceição sees instant impact in Milan’s Supercoppa derby triumph
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New Rossoneri coach is regarded as a hard, emotionless taskmaster but Monday’s win prompted cigars and hugs. Sérgio Conceição warned us on Friday that “I don’t like to give out hugs”, but sometimes a moment gets the better of you. In Milan’s changing room on Monday night he danced, smoked a cigar and, yes, gave Théo Hernández a squeeze on camera. If ever there was a time to break character, it might be after winning your first trophy with the club you took charge of a week ago.
Has there ever been a footballing speed-run like this one? Hired to replace Paulo Fonseca as Milan’s manager – a transition so poorly handled that his predecessor wound up announcing his own sacking from a car window – Conceição led his first training session last Monday and flew with his new team to Riyadh a day later. Since then, he has produced come-from-behind wins over Juventus and Inter, delivering Milan their first silverware in three years.
All this, with a fever. There was uncertainty about whether Conceição would even be on the bench for Friday’s semi-final, at which he told reporters he was running a temperature of 39C. “That’s why my eyes are teary,” he said after watching his team score twice in four second-half minutes to turn that game on its head. “I’m not emotional at all.”.