Of course there were many happy faces after reaching the quarterfinals of the Conference League, but there was certainly no reason to run the polonaise just yet. PSV may have played one of the best games of the season, Roger Schmidt and his team want more.
“This was perhaps one of the best races of the season,” Philipp Max began the press conference. But he immediately added that they also played good games at the beginning of the season.
But still, Max won’t be far from it. PSV played a very good game in Copenhagen and won with a well deserved 4-0. Schmidt also thought it was a great performance. “It is not easy to perform well here after a 4-4 draw in Eindhoven. But I can only be satisfied with today’s game. I am very proud of the team.”
Words Max also said. “This is a real team effort. I am really proud of my team. We played a great game.”
Lots of praise, but it wasn’t very euphoric yet. Schmidt put the achievement in perspective. “This is not the last game of the tournament yet. We want more and celebrate this party a few more times.”
There were many stars on the side of PSV, but Mario Götze took the cake. Afterwards, the German midfielder could count on compliments from his trainer. “Mario is in top form. Everything he does seems so simple, but it isn’t. Everyone loves to play with him. He played a fantastic game. But it is also a team effort.”
The only blemish on the successful evening was the failure of Cody Gakpo. The attacker was kicked to death and had to leave the field injured. Fortunately, the trainer had good news. “The injury seems to be not too bad, the doctor said. But Cody was in a lot of pain.”
Despite his injury, Gakpo still celebrated the party afterwards. The branch that created atmosphere for ninety minutes. “It’s a fantastic day for us, but especially for our fans,” said Schmidt afterwards.
And not a word was lied about that. No polonaise vote yet, but reaching the quarterfinals is a unique achievement. After all, the last European quarterfinal was eleven years ago. It will become clear on Friday afternoon who will be the opponent in the quarterfinals. Possible opponents are Leicester City, Slavia Prague, AS Roma, Bodö Glimt, PAOK, Olympique Marseille and Feyenoord. The draw is at 3:00 PM.