On the importance of the victory over Panetolikos:

«I am very satisfied with this victory and our game. We knew we were in for a tough battle and we had already said that we need to remain calm. That’s football. It was a huge win tonight, as we fought against a very motivated side and defeated them. It was a great game from that aspect as well.

We are not Barcelona, some things can’t happen overnight. Panetolikos are a compact team who would start their transitions from way back. It’s not easy dealing with such a side. In my opinion, this victory came thanks to our consistency in both halves. Had we scored in the first half, we could have displayed more attacking quality, in a quest to net more goals«.

On his midfield line and whether there are signings scheduled:

«I knew it would be a tough match. We were balanced in the first half. Having an opponent lurking to intercept balls, we had to take a risk. We never play for draws, not today, not in any match. As for what I said about our midfield, please take into consideration that I was a bit stressed ahead of a very difficult game. Our opponents were very pacy upfront and had improved a lot in their latest encounters. In the final stages of the match, we risked, had 4-5 big chances to score and faced danger in one play, where we lost the ball when moving forward«.

On Vieirinha’s performance:

«That is why he has the captain’s armband. He is a great player with a fantastic personality«.

On Omar El Kaddouri and his injury:

«He was the solution we had in midfield. Biseswar was also an option, but he had missed some trainings due to back pains. We spoke to Omar and decided to start him. I also believe that Biseswar with his great quality could provide solutions towards the end, taking advantage of our opponents’ fatigue«.

On whether he believes that his side have acquired a character of steel:

«We proved against Atromitos as well that it’s important to fight in every match until the last minute. I am a firm believer of that. I can definitely say that our team’s spirit is different know, we are growing. You saw our players’ reactions after the penalty, you saw how much they wanted to win this game and how boosted our self-confidence is«.

On the referee:

«Why should I make a comment on the referee? About what? We will just waste time on simple things«.