Joy for Del Bosque but Terim left furious with Turkey
Friday, June 17, 2016
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Vicente del Bosque was quietly relieved as Spain rediscovered their scoring touch, his demeanour in stark contrast to an angry Fatih Terim who apologised for Turkey "giving up".
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Vicente del Bosque, Spain coach
We achieved our first target tonight, qualifying for the knockout stage. It was a good performance and we controlled things for 90 minutes. It has been difficult for us to score of late but here we managed three. Now thoughts turn to the third and final Group D match against Croatia.
The ideal in every game is to quickly make your mark, ideally on the scoresheet, and my players understand that. We're not worried. It is difficult to compare this team with those that won titles in 2008 and 2012. Some of Spain's greatest footballers have since retired, but every tournament has its own narrative.
Fatih Terim, Turkey coach
Tonight I saw a team that I don't like, one that gives up and just accepts defeat. Those who know my footballing and coaching career, my attitude and personality, will know that I have no business with those who just give up. I can't come to terms with it and I apologise on behalf of myself and the team to everyone.
Spain are a special team. The first 30 minutes were OK, but afterwards we didn't play well. We conceded two goals through individual mistakes – one of them was unbelievable. After the third goal we fell apart. You shouldn't be pessimistic after conceding one goal against Spain, but the second made things very difficult for us.
For those who do support us, please keep up that support for the match against the Czech Republic. Please don't think that I will accept results like this today or any other day.
Andrés Iniesta, Spain midfielder and man of the match
As the competition goes on we have to keep growing, do things well and minimise the bad points. We did that today. Against the Czechs it was difficult to find the intensity at the beginning.
Tonight things calmed down after the first goal and we managed to have better possession. So 10/10 for the players and 10/10 for the fans, whose support was incredible.
Nuri Şahin, Turkey midfielder
We didn't start badly. In the first 20–25 minutes, we neutralised the contest but later they dominated and we conceded goals through our mistakes. It's difficult to change the score against Spain because they keep hold of the ball for so long. We feel terrible about this.
It's not finished. Yes, it is true that it will be difficult for us now but we still have the chance to finish third. It will be tough but we will try our best. If we have the chance, we will take it for sure.
Álvaro Morata, Spain striker
I'm very happy about how it went, very happy about the goals and very happy to be here. I used to watch all of Spain's matches on TV, and now being here and playing with the team is a dream for me.
They said the strikers weren't scoring, but things were good here and we've worked hard for it. We were up against a tough team. There's a wonderful atmosphere in the squad, we get on very well and you can see that on the pitch.