Pioli provides Kean injury update and has Milan regret

Fiorentina coach Stefano Pioli would have liked to meet his former club Milan ‘at another time’ and says a decision on Moise Kean’s availability will be made tomorrow: ‘He’s feeling good.’

Pioli’s Fiorentina are still winless in six Serie A matches and visit Milan at San Siro on Sunday.

Pioli, a former Milan coach and a Rossoneri Scudetto winner in 2022, previewed the game at a press conference on Friday.

“I would have liked to play this match at another time, with a different position in the standings, but I’m not thinking about personal emotions,” the coach said via Gazzetta.

“Even if they will be inevitable because I’ll be returning to a stadium where I experienced intense and positive years.

“However, my focus has to be on the team. There are still many players at Milan who were part of my squad. I’ll greet them at the end of the match.”

Luka Modric only joined the Rossoneri on a free transfer from Real Madrid this summer, but Pioli will somehow reunite with the Croatian star as well.

“I met him a few years ago, on vacation,” he said.

“We greeted each other, and he introduced himself as a big Milan fan. I congratulated him. There was never any doubt about his quality as a player, and the consistency with which he approaches every match shows that he’s a champion. We’ll have to try to limit him.

“Allegri is a great coach; he’s doing an excellent job,” Pioli continued.

“Milan have brought in strong players, quick, dynamic, and full of personality. It’s a solid team, and we’ll need to be sharp and focused. We want a performance worthy of our opponents.”

Last but not least, Pioli provided an injury update on Kean, who suffered an ankle injury while on international duty with the Italy national team, returning to Florence on Monday and missing the second Azzurri game against Israel.

Kean has been training separately this week, and his availability for the Milan game remains uncertain.

“A decision will be made tomorrow because today he only worked partially with the group,” said Pioli.

“We still have another training session that will be decisive. He’s feeling good, but so far we’ve avoided physical challenges and changes of direction.”