Stelios Malezas referred to the team’s bad performance and spoke about the second leg:
“Throughout the encounter we were a bit “tight”, scared. That is my comment about our collective performance. We fought and tried for the best. Unfortunately, we conceded two goals from set pieces. We fell behind with a goal scored against the run of play. In the final stretch of the encounter, our inertia cost us two more goals.
We spoke before the game and during the interval, when we had already fallen a goal behind. We said that scoring a goal was important, but it was even more crucial not to concede more. We had a very bad game, we let in two more goals. Our task now ahead of the second leg is very tough, almost a mission impossible«.
José Ángel Crespo spoke about the rivals’ game:
“Unfortunately we couldn’t make the most of our 2-3 chances in the early stages of the match. Our rivals however converted their first attempt on goal. Their quality allowed them to hold on to the ball and score two more goals. We lost a game that we could have won.
I don’t believe that we lacked passion or the will to perform. Schalke are a very good side, with quality players and converted the first chance they got. Taking the lead allowed them to produce free-flowing football without stress and score two more goals.
It’s very difficult to turn this tie around. We need to focus now on our upcoming league encounter. The second leg can wait«.
Giannis Mystakidis believes that the score doesn’t reflect the encounter and said he was not satisfied with his performance:
“I don’t know the reason for getting substituted. Perhaps the coach thought that Djalma would perform better. Unfortunately, we suffered a heavy loss that doesn’t reflect what happened on the pitch. I can’t accept that we conceded three goals. We fell behind against the run of play and lost our focus. Up until that moment, we had three opportunities to score and take the lead. Had we scored first, in our home ground with this atmosphere, it would have been an entirely different game.
We tried to react, but our rivals knew what they were after, their players were infallible and that weighed on the result. Fatigue also kicked in, as Schalke opened up the field and made us chase them a lot in defence.
I am not satisfied with my performance. If only we had achieved a better result… Today’s match is over. We are looking ahead to the Veria encounter. Then we will travel to Germany for the second leg and fight despite our slim chances.
I don’t believe that this pressure creates stress. It comes down to us, what we do in front of goal and how much we believe in ourselves. Luck is a huge factor in finishing. We had a shot on post in the early minutes –had that gone in, it would be a different proposition. We carved out some opportunities, but were not lucky and lacked focus«.