Ramos expresses Sevilla relief

Despite his satisfaction after watching his Sevilla FC side claim three points with a 2-1 victory in UEFA Champions League Group H against FC Steaua Bucureşti, coach Juande Ramos felt the home team were fortunate to escape after a poor second-half performance. Steaua coach Massimo Pedrazzini, meanwhile, refused to give up hope of qualification despite a third consecutive defeat.

Juande Ramos, Sevilla coach
We needed those three points in such a short competition and we have increased our advantage over Slavia. We struggled in the second half because we didn't take advantage of our opportunities to score and when we relaxed too much, allowed Steaua to attack a lot more. We had to show our resolve towards the end of the match but we deserved to score more goals because we were the better side. Arsenal have already qualified; they have a great goal difference after their 7-0 win tonight. We still need to win a game and we are heading in the right direction. We were excellent in the first half and pretty bad in the second. We started with confidence but finished the game very worried.

Massimo Pedrazzini, Steaua coach
Sevilla scored two goals in the first ten minutes and it was very difficult for us to try to come back from that, because we knew they are very good. They don't need us to make mistakes to win yet we made two errors. In the second half we played better but it was too late to recover. There are three more games and we have to believe in ourselves. Arsenal and Sevilla have proved they are the strongest teams in the group, but we have two matches at home. Our game against Slavia in Bucharest will be decisive. We will fight for nine points and everything is possible.