Potsdam's Schröder suggests best is yet to come
Sunday, March 30, 2014
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1. FFC Turbine Potsdam's Bernd Schröder deemed his side's second-leg victory "OK", instead reserving praise for ASD Torres CF, who bowed out with their pride intact.
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1. FFC Turbine Potsdam strolled into the UEFA Women's Champions League semi-finals with a 12-1 aggregate defeat of ASD Torres, yet Bernd Schröder was left wanting more.
Indeed, the German coach refused to get carried away after his side booked a last-four date with VfL Wolfsburg courtesy of a 4-1 second-leg victory. His insatiable appetite was shared by Potsdam duo Tabea Kemme and Lia Wälti, while Torres boss Manuela Tesse took pride in a "very strong" performance and goalkeeper Arianna Criscione looked to the future.
Bernd Schröder, Potsdam coach
We said after the first leg that the eight-goal margin was flattering. Torres didn't give us a lot of space in the first half and we struggled to get into the game. We couldn't compensate for the loss of two of our central midfielders, Julia Simic and Johanna Elsig. The result was OK, but we didn't show our ability and some of the players had heavy legs. Our respect goes to Torres, who played well and can leave with their heads held high.
Tabea Kemme, Potsdam defender
We had a few problems today but we're delighted to have reached the semi-finals. Now we're only two games away from the final and everyone is looking ahead. Some of the players had to be cautious today to prevent themselves getting booked.
Lia Wälti, Potsdam midfielder
We can be very pleased over the two legs, but we didn't get up to full speed today. We expected a tight, tough quarter-final and were surprised to win so comfortably. Today's result shows the true difference between the teams. Torres are a better side than they showed last week.
Manuela Tesse, Torres coach
It was a good match. I'm disappointed with the mistakes we made in conceding the second and fourth goals, but the team was very strong. We played some good football against a strong team. We wish Potsdam good luck. We were confident of a more competitive match today and knew we could do better than last week.
Arianna Criscione, Torres goalkeeper
We woke up from the first leg and were eager to show we're a better team. Unfortunately we went down a couple of goals and it took the wind out of us. However, we never gave up and I'm proud of the team. German sides play a different style, more physical and we have to develop our players and league to match them.
Hallbera Gísladóttir, Torres midfielder
We gave Potsdam a tough match. We could have done better on some of the goals but we're pleased. We played a different system today. Every German side is fast and physical, so we need to work on closing that gap.