“Fantastic work from our players”

POST-MATCH

Praising Benfica's collective performance, Bruno Lage considered that the Eagles achieved a “fair victory” over Estoril (1-2) on Saturday, May 3, at the Estádio António Coimbra da Mota.

“Fantastic work from our team. Estoril have a good dynamic. Offensively, it was a first half of great quality, a very good first half from us. We scored two goals and, eventually, we could have scored a third”, said the coach.  

VICTORY WITH THE SUPPORT OF THE FANS

“Good game from us. Two different halves, I think it was a very good first half from our team, both defensively and offensively. Once again, I feel we prepared very well for the game. It's very difficult to play against this team [Estoril], because of the dynamics they have, the way their midfielders pick up play on the wings and try to block the defensive line. So a lot of good work from our midfielders defensively and then offensively. Kökcü and Fredrik [Aursnes] had a very good game in that sense, and then Fredrik still has the chance to come on for the first time, and then the second, to score. A second half that was a little more divided. Estoril also changed their strategy, they didn't press as much, they waited and tried to make more transitions. A great save from Trubin [penalty], who was also decisive. And when I look at what happened during the game, it's a fair victory, a fantastic work from our players, who interpreted what we wanted very well, the way we got the 1st goal, as well as the 2nd. Fantastic work from our coaching staff too. And when that's the case, the support of our fans is there. They pushed us forward. They were with us in the first half, they were with us in the second half, they were with us for the eight minutes of added time. And the most important thing was to win the game and get the 3 points.”

TEAM CONFIDENCE HIGHLIGHTED

"[Team more comfortable on the counter?] “I don't feel that way. Honestly, I don't feel that way. I feel the team is very confident, but on the other side there's a very strong opponent. Because there were many moments in the first half when we pushed Estoril back with their line of 5 - the 3 midfielders and the 2 strikers in attacking midfield - and the team knew how to be calm enough to have the ball, to exploit the width, to exploit the spaces they were offering, so I don't feel that way. What I feel is that it's three games. 0-2... until the penalty I felt the team was comfortable in the game, the penalty came, a great save from Trubin, as I said, then it's game on. It's also about giving credit to our opponents, who have an excellent team, a very good dynamic, they've done a fantastic job, and we also have to give credit to our opponents, so now it's, as you rightly said, about recovering, preparing for the game in the best possible way and then beating Sporting at Luz with the support of our fans.”

“IMPORTANT” MATCH

“[Nervous about Estoril's rise in the 2nd half. Did you fear that the lead and the title would slip away?] The title wouldn't slip away today [Saturday], let me interrupt you, the title wouldn't slip away today, this game was important, it wasn't decisive, the game that is decisive is the one next week.”

STRATEGY AND POSITIONING

“In the first half we controlled the game with and without the ball, especially our pressing was very strong. We were prepared for João Carvalho's positioning on the right or the left. As I said in the flash, they try to block our defensive line, it's a line of five, with João Carvalho moving down to play the third midfielder. If we had to adjust our positioning and do it with the midfielders, João Carvalho's position had to be... he's an extra man in midfield. So we had a strategy on the right, we had a strategy on the left, João played on our left in the first half, then he played on our right in the second half, and I think the team knew how to interpret both, because they did well. I also have to give credit to Estoril; the game in the 2nd half was a bit divided, a bit more rushed, with a lot of stoppages, with one yellow card or another, difficult to understand. I'll tell you, Pavlidis confessed to me that from the moment he was yellow carded he was slightly affected by his performance, by being so aggressive, and the strikers have to be aggressive to get their foot in, to protect, to hold, so we also have to give credit to the opponent, and what's most important, and as you know, is to look at what the game was like, and feel that the team was secure, made a great display in the 2nd half, and then knew how to be a team, be together, be compact, not allowing Estoril any great opportunities, and win the 3 points, which at this point in the Championship were and are very important.”

GET THE MOST POINTS AND WIN

“[Is a championship decided in 90 minutes fair?] Of course it is. It has to be, I don't know if it's going to be in the next 90m, but it's going to be what I said two or three months ago, that the last two games were going to be very important, and they're going to be decisive. It is what it is, look, even today we sometimes try to evaluate things according to what the scores are. Curiously, because I was there [in England], Liverpool scored over 90 points in two consecutive years, didn't win the league, and this year, with a new manager, they're winning the league by over 80 points. So the most important thing is to get the most points at the end and be in first place.”