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CREMONA, ITALY – MARCH 01: Strahinja Pavlovic of AC Milan runs with the ball during the Serie A match between US Cremonese and AC Milan at Stadio Giovanni Zini on March 01, 2026 in Cremona, Italy. (Photo by Francesco Scaccianoce/Getty Images)
Strahinja Pavlovic has revealed that he spoke to Juventus star Dusan Vlahovic and former Fiorentina defender Nikola Milenkovic before deciding to join Milan from RB Salzburg in the summer of 2024 and claims that Serie A is the best league he’s played in: ‘In these two short years, I’ve learned more than the last six of my career’.
The Rossoneri defender spoke in-depth to La Gazzetta dello Sport ahead of the Derby della Madonnina between Milan and Inter coming up in Serie A on Sunday evening.
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Pavlovic on joining Milan, talks with Vlahovic and improving under Allegri
Pavlovic claims that he has learned more from playing in Serie A than he had done across six years of his career across Serbia, France, Belgium, Switzerland and Austria. Being at Milan and playing under Massimiliano Allegri specifically has played a major role in his development.
“You just have to walk around Milanello to understand how many legends have played here, there are pictures everywhere: In the dining room, in the gym … It makes me happy to wear the same shirt that they wore. It’s a great feeling, it’s hard to describe.”
Pavlovic revealed which of his Serbian teammates he spoke to before joining Milan: “I called Luka Jovic who was here last season, but I also spoke with Milenkovic and Vlahovic to find out more about the Italian division.”
He insists that moving to Serie A has been the most insightful step of his career: “Milan is the biggest club I’ve played for so far and Serie A is stronger than Austria, France and Serbia. Everything is different here, there are no easy games. And in these two short years, I’ve learned more than the last six of my career. For a defender, it’s the perfect league to grow.
“The coach puts a lot of attention on the defence and we’ve made a lot of progress. The credit is not only due to the defenders, though, because we need everyone’s help. The forwards and midfielders lend us a big hand as well.
“(I’ve learned) so many little things. I’ve started paying attention to little details that I hadn’t even considered before, which makes the difference.”
After a difficult 2024-25 season in which Milan finished in eighth place, missing out on European football altogether for 2025-26, the Rossoneri now find themselves in second, albeit 10 points off their city rivals, Inter.
Are Milan ‘happy’ with their season so far?
“It’s a difficult question,” Pavlovic pondered. “We’re happy compared to last year, the goal at the beginning of the season was to get into the top four and we are in the running to achieve that. But looking at our performance, we could have had more points, so there is a bit of regret.
“There are still 11 games to go and we will do everything we can to get the most out of them.”
Click here to read the full interview with Pavlovic
ByPeter Young
Peter Young is a Senior Reporter with Football Italia.
