Roger Schmidt: "We believe in ourselves and always respect our opponents"

PREVIEW

On Tuesday, September 19, Roger Schmidt previewed the match between Benfica and Salzburg, on matchday 1 of the Champions League group stage.

Benfica and Salzburg are teams with many similarities in their approach to the game. What could make the difference?

We'll be playing against an intense team that also puts a lot of pressure on the ball carrier and works well without the ball. In recent games, our approach has been a little different, because we've faced teams with a low block, but we have to be ready for the story of each game. We believe in ourselves and always respect our opponents, especially in the Champions League, where there are no weak teams. Salzburg has worked hard in recent years to become part of the Champions League family, and for them, it is something very special. We're confident we can play a great game at home and the aim is to win.

This match marks the beginning of a new story in the Champions League. What do you expect from the team in the competition?

It's a big challenge to play in a Champions League group stage because you're up against teams that were successful last season. They all have a lot of quality, and my experience tells me that we have to be focused on every game. We're completely focused on Salzburg and the 90 or 100 minutes we have to play. We only have six games to show that we deserve to be one of the two teams that qualify for the knockout stage, and we can't afford to make any mistakes. We have to be ready for every game, and that's what we want to do. We play our first game at home, and we want to win to put ourselves in a good position in the group. But in the Champions League, we know that even when we play at home, we have to work hard to make a difference. Last season our approach was to be totally focused and that's how we managed to win several games and succeed in the competition. We're going to try to do the same this season. We're very well-prepared, we've been playing well in recent weeks and we're confident. We respect our opponents because it's important to know that they also play very intense football.

How special is it for you to face Salzburg, the club where you became champion for the first time?

It's special because it's in the Champions League. I coached Salzburg a long time ago, 10 years ago. In the meantime, I've been to Germany, China, the Netherlands and Portugal. Not many of the people I worked with then are there anymore, but my memories of that time are great. We had an excellent squad with great players, but that's all part of the story. For me, the most important thing is to be ready to play a Champions League match, and that's what I'm focused on.

Do you feel the team is ready to take a step higher in the Champions League, after reaching the quarter-finals twice in a row?

I understand the question, but I have a lot of respect for the Champions League. In the last two years, Benfica have reached the quarter-finals and that's a great achievement. But that doesn't mean that, from now on, our task will become any easier. It's always a challenge for us to reach the knockout stage. That's our first objective, and then we try to do our best to progress in the competition. Right now, we have to focus on each of the six group games, where several teams are eliminated. We need total focus for tomorrow [Wednesday]. It would be great to achieve something similar to last season, and we're going to fight for it, but we're not thinking about that at the moment.

How do you see Benfica and Salzburg working to make the most of the talent in their academies?

Both teams are fantastic when it comes to their academies. They always bring players into the first team, and not every team that plays in the Champions League gets to play with players from their academies. It's a great sign for both teams.