"We completely controlled the game"

POST-MATCH

In analyzing Benfica's 0-2 victory over Ajax on Tuesday, November 25, in the fifth round of the Champions League group stage, José Mourinho praised the way his players respected the game plan on their way to their first victory in this edition of the competition.

In the flash interview area, speaking to Sport TV, the Eagles' coach gave his initial analysis and considered that his team completely controlled the game, except the “chaotic” final 10 minutes of the first half.

"It was a moment when we lost control a little bit, we recovered the ball, lost the ball, recovered the ball, lost the ball... We were struggling a little bit with that control. In the second half, yes, it's true that we weren't dangerous, it's true that we couldn't get out, but they had only one chance, from Klaassen, and then the game was completely controlled by us. The feeling now, in the last 15 minutes of the game, is that even if it were 150 minutes instead of 15, they still wouldn't score. And that solidity on the part of the team, the effort of the players, their concentration, the joy of the group after the victory, is a beautiful thing," he added. 

Before heading to the press conference, José Mourinho explained that he had decided to strengthen the defense by bringing on Tomás Araújo to replace Sudakov, in order to protect António Silva and Otamendi from 2-on-2 situations with the giants Weghorst and Dolberg: "There could be a lot of crossing situations, there could be a lot of set piece situations. A team that also has to win could certainly play a longer and more direct game. At that moment, the goal was to win."

LABELS DON'T MATTER

"[The Dutch press says that ‘minimalist Mourinho has done it again’...] The important thing is that I did it again. Minimalism doesn't matter."

GOOD PLAYERS, HAPPY COACH

"[How many players would you take off at halftime today?] I wouldn't take any of them off. Some had a greater impact on the game than others, but they all followed the game plan and showed great dedication and commitment. I wouldn't take any of them off. So much so that, with five substitutions to make, I only made the first one in the last 15 minutes, and I didn't even use all five, so I was happy."

BARREIRO IS A “BENFICA-STYLE PLAYER”

"[From now on, will you use Barreiro as an example for the team in terms of attitude and commitment?] I agree that Barreiro is a Benfica player. Because of his attitude, his calmness, his humility, what he brings to the team, his versatility, I think he's a great team player." 

REVIEW OF THE MATERIAL COVERED AND MENTAL CALCULATIONS

"We lost, and deservedly so, against Newcastle. We lost, and badly, against Chelsea, we deserved more. We lost badly against Bayer Leverkusen, we deserved much more. I think the drama of the situation is the defeat against Qarabag. Because, if we imagine, the 3 points against Qarabag were mandatory, with today's 3 points it would be 6, we were missing 3 points in 3 games, and our situation would be fantastic. With that defeat right at the start, then we couldn't get any points in the other games, the situation today was a borderline situation. I don't know how many points we need, maybe only tomorrow [Wednesday] after all the games will we have a rough idea of how many points we need, but I think that we definitely don't need to win all three games, I don't think we need 12 points, I don't think we need that. I think we need 9/10 points. Is it difficult? It's difficult, but we're still in it."

A TEAM THAT KNEW HOW TO BE... A TEAM

"[Congratulations on maintaining your perfect record against Ajax. You said that in the past you beat Ajax because you had Di María, Benzema, and Ronaldo, but today they weren't there. What made the difference?] The team. The team was a team. I also beat Ajax with Manchester United, with a team performance. A performance that the Ajax people didn't like at the time, but the [Europa League] trophy is in Manchester. Today, the team wasn't perfect, but the team was good. What we did for the second goal was what I expected the team to do earlier. Our defensive block won the ball back countless times, but we missed a lot of passes when trying to get out of the pressure and do what we did for the second goal. So, playing a Champions League game away from home and them having one shot in the first half, which was saved by Trubin, and in the second half, one chance for Klaassen... Two chances in 90 minutes in a Champions League game away from home is only possible because the boys played very compactly."

“LUKEBAKIO DOESN’T PLAY, SOMEONE ELSE DOES”… AND MAYBE YOUNG PEOPLE

"[Could Lukebakio's speed have made the difference in killing the game off earlier?] I could have, but I said right from the first press conference, when Lukebakio was injured, ‘Lukebakio doesn’t play, someone else plays’. And when someone else plays, we can’t play the same way, we have to play differently. Against Atlético, we tried to understand something, and today we played with Aursnes and Sudakov, who don't give us that kind of game, but who gave us other things, and that's what we have to do. This afternoon, I was obviously watching, not the B team, but the youth team against Ajax... There are players who catch my attention, and more opportunities will come for these young people."