Italian coach Massimiliano Allegri admitted that his team, Milan, is suffering from significant defensive problems after the surprising home defeat to Cremonese with a score of 2-1 in the opening match of the new Serie A season.

Allegri said in his statements to DAZN Italia: "If we look at the performance, we had eight shots on target, but the difference was in the determination in attack and defense. We conceded two goals that could have been avoided with a little more focus. Fortunately, the season is still in its early stages, and we have time to address these details."

The coach clarified: "I don’t think the issue is related to the lack of a specific player. In Serie A, you face strong opponents like Cremonese, who deserved to win because they played with defensive intelligence, while we made naive mistakes. We need more determination both with the ball and without it."

Allegri defended his tactical choices after relying on a 3-5-2 formation that sometimes shifts to a 4-3-3 with Pervis Estupiñán and Alexis Saelemaekers on the wings, but he acknowledged there were issues with defensive coverage: "We knew that Cremonese excels in crosses, and we had to cover the area better. We cannot allow the same mistakes to happen; you can't let a player shoot freely with his head or cross without pressure. We lacked the sense of danger."

He also commented on the performance of Mexican striker Santiago Giménez, who appeared to be below his level: "Santiago arrived late in the preparation period and was not in top shape. He tried as much as he could, and he had a header chance at the end that he didn’t capitalize on."

He concluded his remarks by emphasizing the need to change the mentality before facing Lecce in the next round: "We must turn the negatives into positives. If we only want to play beautifully, we will lose to any team, as happened tonight."