Jol praises Hamburg for standing tall

Hamburger SV coach Martin Jol was a relieved man after his side came through a "jittery affair" and held off a valiant Manchester City FC comeback to book a UEFA Cup semi-final meeting with domestic rivals Werder Bremen. Despite taking the lead, it could have all been very different for HSV, with City playmaker Elano twice denied by the woodwork as the hosts were edged out 4-3 on aggregate. Not that manager Mark Hughes is ruing missed chances, instead seeing hope for the future after his players showed "what they're capable of".

Martin Jol, Hamburg coach
We knew this would be a jittery affair, but we didn't allow the atmosphere to intimidate us. There were periods during the game when we made mistakes but it was a very important experience, especially for the younger players. I made it to the UEFA Cup quarter-finals with Tottenham Hotspur a couple of years ago and it is great to go one better. I have to compliment the players, we have been playing every three days for some time now and they know just what is expected of them. At the moment we are just thinking match by match.

Mark Hughes, Manchester City manager
We're proud of our performance as it was big night for us. We produced a performance full of energy and passion and the crowd sensed that something was going to happen. We needed something to happen at the right times to put us in the ascendancy. We kept probing and putting pressure on their back four and midfield and they couldn't handle it. They're a good side and we made them look quite ordinary. That's what we're capable of and we need to produce it more often. They [the crowd] were fantastic and when we went down to ten men we needed their help. I think it's important we made a statement tonight and it's there for everyone to see.