Zidane satisfied after Madrid oust wasteful Roma
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Article summary
Zinédine Zidane was a picture of happiness and relief after Real Madrid held off a Roma side left to rue the three golden chances they squandered with the second leg goalless.
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- Madrid win 4-0 on aggregate to reach quarter-finals for sixth season in a row
- Zinédine Zidane singles out substitute Lucas Vázquez for praise
- Roma left to rue several missed opportunities to overturn 2-0 deficit
- Cristiano Ronaldo takes UEFA Champions League tally to 90 goals
- Quarter-final draw at 12.00CET on 18 March in Nyon
Zinédine Zidane, Real Madrid coach
It was a difficult game but in the end we achieved our objective, which was to go through. And we didn't concede a goal. Over the 90 minutes a lot of things could have happened because we were up against a team with good, fast footballers. But we got the job done.
Casemiro played well and [substitute] Lucas Vázquez was also important. He gives his all whenever he plays and he always competes.
I'm happy with James's goal. He is training well and it's always important for a player like him to score. Every time Cristiano Ronaldo is on the pitch he wants to score and he keeps doing it. We can now look forward to the draw and relax. We need to rest.
Luciano Spalletti, Roma coach
The reality is that we lost 2-0 twice. It's only right that Real Madrid go through. We've got to improve in terms of our mentality and how clinical we are. We weren't at the level we had to be tonight. The regret isn't to have lost but to have not played the game with the right conviction.
We didn't play badly in either leg, but we didn't take advantage of the chances we created. Right now on a mental level perhaps we are a bit fragile. It's a big game, big games make you nervous and we have to change this. We needed to be more aggressive, communicate more and show more confidence.
We need to help each other and at the moment we are lacking that as a side. This will allow us to improve as a team, but most of all we can't miss chances.