Saelemaekers: ‘Milan have no excuse’ for 2-0 defeat to Benfica
ITALY - SEPTEMBER 16: Alexis Saelemaekers of AC Milan looks on during the UEFA Europa League 2026/27 League Phase MD1 match between AC Milan and SL Benfica at Stadio San Siro on September 16, 2026 in Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
Alexis Saelemaekers warns Milan ‘have no excuse’ after the 2-0 loss to Benfica in the Europa League, so they must ‘work harder and make sure we don’t repeat these errors.’
The Rossoneri now seem to be in crisis after losing their Europa League opener 2-0 at home to Benfica, following back-to-back Serie A draws against Juventus and Lazio.
It was perhaps their worst performance of the campaign so far, as the team has if anything been going backwards as time has gone on.
Dodi Lukebakio and Jakub Kaminski goals both saw very sluggish defending and a lack of intensity.
“I think we prepared well for this match, but we lacked determination and grit. Now we’ve got to sit down with the coach to understand what went wrong and make sure we don’t repeat the same mistakes,” Saelemaekers told Sky Sport Italia.
Benfica changed nine of the starting XI for this fixture, so it was by no means a full stretch side, but once again Milan failed to score in the first half and they cannot always rely on substitutions to turn the tide.
“Many teams now in the first half study each other to see how they are set out, but it didn’t really work for us in recent matches,” noted Saelemaekers.
“We have no excuse, we are Milan and we have got to score goals. We must work harder and make sure we don’t keep repeating these errors.”
A bizarre statistic shows that all but one of Milan’s goals in the first five games were scored during a five-minute spell from the 64th minute to the 69th.
The only outlier was an own goal from Venezia’s Redouane Halhal at the 89th.
Meanwhile, Saelemaekers is seen largely as a Joker in the Pack to come off the bench in various different roles, as today he was in the central trequartista position.
“Work is the only thing I can say, we have to keep working together, just as I have to work to win back my place.”
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