Amorim's Milan Era Begins With Three Points

Ruben Amorim's reign as AC Milan manager opened with a victory, but the Portuguese tactician was quick to highlight the mental adjustments his squad still needs to make after a nervy 2-1 win over Torino on Sunday.

Goals from Alphadjo Cisse and Adrien Rabiot in the second half gave Milan the edge, but Che Adams dragged Torino back into the contest late on, setting up a tense finale that Amorim felt exposed his players' reluctance to truly go for the kill.

Milan enjoyed the lion's share of possession at 58.9% and fired 19 shots to Torino's eight, yet Amorim sensed a lingering conservatism in his side — a mindset he is determined to eradicate.

"Don't Be Afraid to Lose"

Speaking to DAZN after the match, Amorim made it clear that he wants his Milan side to approach every game with the courage to win rather than the fear of losing.

"The passion of the goal is for a coach who celebrated so many Milan goals, and now I am the coach of Milan, so I want to feel that passion in my staff too," Amorim said, reflecting on the emotional weight of taking charge of one of Italy's most storied clubs.

"I think we saw a way of playing that is more similar to what we used to do, but we need time to get this team playing in a different way," he added, acknowledging the transition period required to implement his philosophy.

Second-Half Response Earns Praise

Despite his concerns, Amorim did find positives — particularly in how his players rallied together when the match hung in the balance.

"However, in the final minutes we were working as a team, suffering and defending, we were tired, but we were a team. That is a very good feeling," he said.

"In the first half, the concern of my players was control the game, don't lose the game, don't lose it in transition, but we lacked aggression in the final third. We talked about that in the dressing room, they understood that this is not how you win the game. It's not drawing, it's not waiting for the game, we need to do that in order to win the game. We put a lot more pace into the first 20 minutes of the second half, because again, I think we lack physicality in this moment."

Winning Is Everything — But Not Enough

Amorim struck a pragmatic note about the result, emphasising that while performances and playing style matter deeply, the bottom line in football remains straightforward.

"The most important thing is to win," he declared. "We talk about ways of playing, but there is one goal in football: winning. It's not enough, it cannot be enough for Milan, but we showed some of what we worked on in training and in pre-season, even under stress, and that is a good feeling."

"We need to work on how to attack the box, how to defend our own box, how to suffer with the ball, so I am happy today because we won, and the concerns will be for tomorrow."

With the opening three points secured, Amorim will now turn his attention to refining his team's approach as he looks to mould Milan into a side that plays — and thinks — with the boldness their illustrious history demands.