‘Nothing to clarify’ – Conceiçao makes future claim as Milan rumours intensify

Sergio Conceiçao insists he no longer wants to discuss his future, but Gazzetta insists the Portuguese coach will likely leave Porto in the summer and is ‘already studying’ Milan.

Gazzetta reports Conceiçao is the leading candidate to take over at Milan next season even if the Rossoneri remain interested in Paulo Fonseca and Roberto De Zerbi.

Conceiçao met new Porto President Andres Villas-Boas earlier this week, but the two parties agreed to discuss the future at the end of the season. On May 19, Porto will visit Braga in a key league fixture, while on May 26, they’ll face Sporting CP in the Portuguese Cup Final.

According to Gazzetta, Villas-Boas is eager to appoint a new coach for a fresh start next season.

To be fair, Conceiçao has recently signed a contract extension until June 2028, but he did it under ex-President Pinto da Costa so he can decide to terminate the agreement at the end of the season, given that Villas-Boas has now stepped in as the club’s chief.

According to Gazzetta, Conceiçao is ‘waiting for a signal’ from Milan, but his agent Jorge Mendes has been working on a deal with the Rossoneri for several weeks.

Conceiçao currently earns €3.5m per season, less than Stefano Pioli, so he’d be a good fit for the Rossoneri also in terms of finances.

According to Gazzetta, Conceiçao could play with a 4-4-2 system or a 4-2-3-1 formation at San Siro and Monaco’s Youssouf Fofana and PSG’s Manuel Ugarte would be his priority targets in central midfield.

However, the ex-Inter and Lazio coach insisted on Saturday that he was not planning to leave.

Conceiçao makes future claim as Milan rumours intensify

“There is nothing to clarify. I’ve been here for seven years, and I’ve already extended three times, including the last one,” he said, as quoted by Gazzetta.

“Our club have had difficult moments with FFP restrictions and the COVID pandemic. We’ve had difficulties but we are still here, hoping to win titles. I think the work has been good. The opinion of the three [presidential] candidates and the current president was that I should have extended more than a year ago,” he continued.

“I am not tied to any position. I no longer want to discuss this, so please respect it.”