Copa del Rey – quarterfinals leg 1: FC Barcelona 1-0 Atletico Madrid (Messi 82′ penalty)
Coach Luis Enrique comments on the short win and a very closed game:
On the 1-0 win… “it means we can feel optimistic about the second leg. But we have to go out to win at the Vicente Calderón”.
“Defensively, they’re one of the best teams in the world” said the first team manager. “We expected them to make things difficult for our attackers … We knew that to hurt Atlético we would need to be compact in both phases of the match.”
“Before we even played this match, it was always our intention to win the return leg. This was a very positive result, but I never settle for future results. Atlético still have a lot to say. It looks like it’ll be an attractive game because we’re up against a team that will also be out for a win”.
“The team defended brilliantly today. And that’s important for getting through matches.”
On the other hand Atletico’s coach Diego Simeone believes his team preserved chances to move on:
“I see the second leg with open possibilities, against a rival that plays well. Due to the result that occurred, it’s an open qualifying round.”
“I thought the game was controlled defensively, with few outlets for counterattacks and little chances of a goal from us, but controlled. The goal came and now we’ll have to wait for the second leg. I imagine it won’t be easy either.”
