According to Roger Schmidt, the victory could have been a bit higher, but the PSV coach was especially pleased that his team had won. With the return of several players in Israel next week, he does not expect any problems during the return.
“The most important thing is the profit,” Schmidt began his press talk. “Of course we could have scored more, but I think it’s much more important that we played strong tactically.”
The German coach especially praised his alternative defence. There had to be improvised as Armando Obispo, André Ramalho and Olivier Boscagli were absent.
“Maccabi Tel Aviv has had one shot on goal. We did well without any real defenders. You have to be able to accept that it will only be 1-0.”
Philipp Max was central in the back because of the personnel problems. It was the left-back’s first time in a long time. “The last time I played as a central defender was in the under-19″, said the German, who had to settle for a place on the bench in recent periods. “I did my best and I think it was reasonable in terms of level. We kept a clean sheet, so that’s good.”
The defender was also satisfied with PSV’s performance. “We had one goal and that was to win. 1-0 is a good starting position.”
Yet Maccabi Tel Aviv is still alive with this result. That was not necessary given the quality of the Israeli team. A possible cauldron awaits in Israel, but Schmidt does not foresee any problems.
“We have a lot of players back next week. Then there is another team. They play very physical football. With the return of Boscagli and Ibrahim Sangaré, our team also gets strong guys back.”
The German coach was not completely carefree either, but he does see a PSV that has been playing well in recent weeks. “It will undoubtedly be a tough game. But we can stick to our last games. We kept clean three times and played very strong tactically. We have to finish it next week.”