NEWS | 08/01/2020
“We made the most of the chances we had”, added Valverde."Playing with five midfielders is a way of controlling the game and that really told. We didn't give the ball away much and we dominated possession. Valencia lost the battle in the engine room. Every player in this team has the ability to score goals and we showed that today. Everyone is also doing their bit defensively. We're together, a solid unit and it's paying dividends. We feel in great shape from a defensive point of view”.
Final
“Now we have to recover, head back to the hotel, rest up, eat well, see the physios so that we're in the best possible condition come Sunday. I hope we can bring the cup home”.
Valverde: “We made the most of our chances”
“The team performed very well. It was a tough game, really hard work. Once we'd built up a good lead, we relaxed a bit because we were tired, but we kept running for 90 minutes. Valencia are a strong side and we struggled at their place, we nearly lost there. Today was a bit of revenge for us. We went out to press them from minute one and we did a good job. We made the most of the chances we had and the most important thing is that we won and we're in the final”.
Casemiro: "We had the match completely under control and now we have to turn our attentions to the final".
“The midfield give us real movement. The coach wanted me to switch positions with Luka, we did that well and then the second goal came from that. We did as the coach asked”.
Goals from midfield
"We know Karim is a world class striker, he is key to this team and he couldn’t be here with us, but he is helping us. It is important that we try to score goals and we play for the team. Who scores doesn’t matter, the win matters”.
Casemiro: “We controlled the game”
“We controlled the game. We wanted control of the ball and we got it, pulling off what we planned. Now we turn to the final and our next rival. Both of those are tough teams. We have to plan things out and look for the win”.
Five in midfield
“We had control out there. We tested the idea of five in midfield out there. We showed we could play that way against a tough team. We know Valencia play well and it is always complicated playing them, but we managed and controlled the game, that’s paramount for us”.
The fans
“We have had so much support from day one here. We need to be thankful, we feel at home. Today we showed we are the biggest team in the world, even away from Madrid we dig deep. Thanks to the fans for the support, they really helped us out there tonight”.
