Ståle: - Our defence was almost perfect

Speaking after FCK’s 3-1 win over Panathinaikos in the UEFA Champions League, Ståle Solbakken described his pleasure at another dominating performance by his side:

by Joe Short

- I think the game was more or less finished after the first goal, and we controlled it from there. Like other Champions League games our defence was almost perfect. It would have been nice to keep a clean sheet but I don’t really mind.

- From playing in the qualifying rounds, we have suddenly reached a stage of the competition we wouldn’t have dreamed of backing August. As for the game, I expected us to be a little bit better than Panathinaikos and we were.

Panathinaikos manager Jesualdo Ferreira also spoke at the press conference, and discussed his view of Copenhagen:

- Tonight we played a very good team with everything to fight for. We were unlucky in the second half, and this was the best we have played in the Champions League this season.

- Copenhagen stay in second place in the group, so they will play one of the big clubs in the next round, maybe Real Madrid, Chelsea or Manchester United. The first game is at home, so it is more difficult. It’s very important that Copenhagen play in this stage of the Champions League; it gives them more experience and builds the club as a whole.

Some of the squad was available after the game to comment on the club’s progression through the group stage:

Zdenek Pospech

- It was fantastic. It was great. We had pressure on us, and maybe started a bit nervous; but we lived up to expectations and ended up with the perfect result. We deserved to win and we deserve to go further, and so do all of our fans.

Oscar Wendt

- The whole autumn has been magical, and it’s impressive to end in autumn with 51 points in the Superliga: as is getting 10 points in a Champions League group that consisted only of champions. It has truly been a pleasure to get to the last 16.

Mathias Zanka

- We fully deserved our win today. We dominated them throughout the match, scored a nice goal for 1-0 and then were in full control. We gave them few chances. I think we delivered a fantastic performance and are now happy to go on holiday.