Marco Amelia echoed his teammates’ views on Ricky Kaka’s showing for Milan against Barcelona, and values the point picked up.
The Rossoneri held the Catalans to a 1-1 result in the third round of group stage games in the Champions League on Tuesday evening, thanks to Robinho’s opener and Lionel Messi’s equaliser both in the first half.
For the Italians’ goalkeeper, the performance of former Real Madrid man Kaka deserved the plaudits.
“I think Kaka's performance was the most important thing of the night for us,” Amelia told UEFA’s official website afterwards.
“It's good for the whole environment here, it's good for the rest of the squad, for the fans and it's good for him. He seems very motivated and serene, and his usual pace on the pitch is back.
“He is still is a great champion. I don't think there is much difference between the player he was here at Milan before leaving and the player he is now.
“He just needs more stamina to be able to play like that for the whole 90 minutes.”
Amelia also reflected on the value of the point picked up against Barca.
“We are very satisfied with the point even if we went close to taking all three in the end. We played well, giving away almost nothing to Barcelona.
“Maybe we caused them trouble by playing without an outright striker, but I think the whole team did well, fighting hard and not defending too deep.
“Their goal came from a mistake of us in losing possession. I think we are growing as a team and this point is good for morale. We will go to the Camp Nou to make another step towards qualification.”
