"We fought as a team and we succeeded": the players' reactions

António Silva e Bah analyzed Benfica's progression to the quarter-finals of the Europa League, after a 0-1 win against Rangers in the second leg of the last 16 at Ibrox Stadium on Thursday, March 14. 

ANTÓNIO SILVA

"Our fans helped us a lot"

"Above all, we controlled the crosses. They're a team that crosses a lot. We were very good at controlling inside the box. They had very strong players who entered the box a lot. Then it was about making good decisions in the final third. In the first half, we did a bit of that, we didn't have much of the ball in attacking midfield. In the second half, we had more quality, and then we got the goal, which is what we needed. We know the quality and the way these teams play. We had to match them in terms of intensity, aggression, duels won, and second balls. We ended up doing it well, especially in the second half. We fought as a team and got through. [Support of the fans] The support of our fans is always important. They certainly helped us a lot today, as they will help us a lot in the three competitions we have ahead of us, in which we have a lot of objectives. We know that we have to win every game. After the defeats we've suffered - which aren't normal for a club like Benfica - the best response we can give is to win the games we have coming up. Qualifying for the quarter-finals was clearly a goal. What we want to do is keep working as hard as we can and give the victories to our fans. The pressure of playing for Benfica is to win every game. We know that the demands of our fans are as high as possible, and we try to do our best. We've got a couple of finals to reach, which is our goal in the league; we've still got the Portuguese Cup to play for; and in the Europa League we're on the right track."

BAH

"I'm very happy with the performance"

"We knew it would be a tough game, the atmosphere here [at Ibrox Stadium] is very good, and they put a lot of pressure on us. But we fought very well, we played a very good game. I'm very happy. They put a lot of pressure on, made a lot of crosses and there was a lot of fighting in the penalty areas. I'm very happy with the performance. We need to win games to build confidence, and the only thing we can do is keep working. We did it, I'm happy. Every win is important, and we want to compete in international competitions. It was important to get through to the next round. A goal always helps you control the game better, I don't think we were nervous, but of course the stadium put a lot of pressure on us, there were a lot of crosses, we knew we'd have to fight hard. It was difficult, but we played a good game. We want to go step by step, game by game."