Ludogorets' Misidjan enjoys dream return

Dutch winger Virgil Misidjan enjoyed a hugely satisfying return to the Netherlands by scoring in a 2-0 triumph for PFC Ludogorets Razgrad over PSV Eindhoven, whose midfielder Stijn Schaars felt his team had hit "rock bottom". Misidjan was delighted to play in his native country once again and the goal capped a dream return. "Things could not have gone any better," he said of the Bulgarian champions' first-ever match in the UEFA Europa League. His joy was in stark contrast with the disappointment expressed by PSV's Schaars and Jeffrey Bruma.

Virgil Misidjan, Ludogorets forward
It is a great way to return to the Netherlands, with a victory – and a goal. We knew that PSV are not in the best of form at the moment so we felt beforehand that we could cause a surprise. I thought we played quite well, whereas they gave away possession too often and played at a low tempo. Normally you expect PSV to come at you here in Eindhoven but it did not happen.

A lot of people wondered what I was doing when I left this country to play in Bulgaria, so I hope I showed them this evening that the standard of football there is high. I spoke about this with Mitchell [Burgzorg], my Dutch team-mate, and we really hoped we would draw an Eredivisie team in the group phase. I enjoyed my return immensely; things could not have gone any better.

Stijn Schaars, PSV midfielder
Today as a team we reached rock bottom. We had discussed what to do to pressurise our opponents, how to react when we lose possession, that kind of thing. When we cannot do what we agreed then it is difficult to win, no matter who you are playing. We started the season very brightly but we knew that we had also hit a rough patch.

But that does not make it any easier to accept. It is not as if we were resting players with an eye on Sunday's match with Ajax. Karim [Rekik] and Georginio [Wijnaldum] were unavailable today and Jetro [Willems] went off injured, so it is clear that we need everyone in the squad, and it should not matter who plays. I did not start because I have a bruised toe, so it was time to give it some rest.

Jeffrey Bruma, PSV defender
I had definitely hoped my first match as captain of PSV would not be as disappointing as this. I cannot explain why we played so poorly. The organisation on the pitch left a lot to be desired. But really, we simply weren't good enough. Our recent performances have not been great, but it is not as if we took to the pitch worried because we have not won any of our last five matches. We wanted to win; it just did not work out this evening. Of course we are still in contention in the Europa League, we have got off to a bad start but there are still five games to go.