AC Milan’s Sergio Conceicao Thanks Udinese Fans for Their Support of Mike Maignan

AC Milan manager Sergio Conceicao expressed his admiration for the Udinese fans, who showed respect by applauding Mike Maignan as he was stretchered off the pitch following a collision with AC Milan teammate Alex Jimenez during their 4-0 victory on Friday night.

With Milan leading 2-0 in the Serie A clash, Maignan rushed out of his area in the 51st minute and collided heads with Jimenez while attempting to intercept the ball.

The French goalkeeper had faced racial abuse during Milan’s previous visit to Udinese in January 2024, when he walked off the pitch due to racist taunts from some local fans.

“I was truly impressed. The scene with the player down and the surrounding chaos… I have to commend the Udinese supporters,” Conceicao told Sky Sport.

“There’s the player and there’s the person. Fans can jeer the player, but not the person. That round of applause was an extraordinary gesture; in my 40 years in football, I have witnessed very few acts like that. Right now, Mike is in hospital undergoing tests.“

The Milan squad urgently signalled to the medical team to attend to Maignan, who seemed to be momentarily unconscious.

After the match, the Rossoneri find themselves in ninth place with 51 points, having a rather underwhelming season with six games remaining.

“Today we played as a team, but it’s just three points,” commented Conceicao, whose team has secured only three wins in their last eight outings.

“Now we must focus on Atalanta. Overall, I witnessed a solid and well-balanced team that looked physically prepared. Having 2-3 weeks to work on this was crucial.”

Milan will host third-placed Atalanta next weekend before taking on Inter Milan in the second leg of their Coppa Italia semi-final, a vital match in their quest for European football next season.

When pressed on whether the team still believes in securing a European spot, Conceicao remained non-committal.

“We’re concentrating on tomorrow’s training; we need to avoid too much talk,” he replied. “Ultimately, what counts are the results from each training session, and everything else will follow in matches.”