After watching his side record our first Champions League win of the season, and a first victory on the road in the group stages since 2010, Roberto Di Matteo was understandably pleased.
For long parts it was a tense affair, and we had Petr Cech to thank for a wonder save with the score still at 1-0. However, the all-important second goal came from the boot of David Luiz who scored a stunning free-kick, and that, as the manager admitted, was vital.
On our performance
‘We expected a difficult game and that’s how it turned out,’ said the Italian. ‘We were a little bit slow out of the blocks, we still had chances to score, we scored one and had a couple of other chances.
‘The second goal was important, we were much better and sharper in the second half and once we scored that second we knew we were going to win the game.
‘I expected a difficult game. No matter what, they try to play their football, but it’s not easy. There are no pushovers, you see that from other results, the Champions League is difficult.
‘The most important aspect for us was to win, the fact we scored four and kept a clean sheet means it was an excellent result for us. Every game is different, it’s a difficult competition and away from home it’s not easy.’
On Petr Cech‘s crucial save
‘Cech made a crucial save in the game, when its 1-0 it’s always dangerous, they commited players forward and that’s how football is.
‘We were looking for the second to close the game, they were down and they tried to go forward with a lot of players, they had one good chance and a couple of half decent ones.’
On FC Nordsjaelland
‘With every game they play they will learn, and I’m sure they will get some points. The way Kasper [Hjulmand] sees football is good for the club and they have a bright future.
‘They won the first title in their history and have some young, inexperienced players. It’s a question of time, but it’s good to see that they want to play football, he’s doing a very good job.’
On the performance of Fernando Torres
‘He was excellent, it’s a shame he didn’t score when he had a chance but he played very well for the team, he was always a threat.’
On our qualification hopes
‘As I said before, it’s a difficult group, Shakhtar are a very good team and I imagine it will be a contest between the three sides.’
