Red Bull Salzburg head coach Matthias Jaissle admitted he was ‘very satisfied’ with the performance of his side against AC Milan, who he labelled as a ‘very strong’ opponent.
Milan did not quite hit the same highs that they did in the Derby della Madonnina win over Inter on Saturday but they did show good character to come from behind against a a very difficult opponent to earn a point.
Noah Okafor had put the home side ahead before Rafael Leao set up Alexis Saelemaekers for the equaliser. It must be remembered that Salzburg by now have experience of the big stage did not lose at home in the Champions League last season including even their knockout game against Bayern Munich.
Jaissle spoke to the media who gathered in the press conference room at the Red Bull Arena to dissect the performance he saw from his side and discuss the result more generally, with TMW relaying his comments.
“I am very satisfied with our performance against very strong opponents. We had to compensate for problems with injuries that occurred before and during the game, it was definitely a positive evening for us,” he said.
Does the glass feel half full or half empty?
“As I said it was an interesting match, very nice. We don’t think about the points, the classification, we are happy with how we represented our team.”
Your players said they are sorry for not getting three points…
“We are satisfied but ambitious, we wanted to show ourselves with our strength, our way of playing. If we had won against such a team it would have been very nice.”
Three injuries upset your plans…
“The manager has consultants, so we prepare scenarios to handle them quickly and well. It’s a problem if someone gets hurt, substitutes like Bernardo deserve our respect.”
In the last minute of play Leao hit the post. What were you thinking at that moment?
“I didn’t breathe, I think it’s normal to have phases of the game where you feel under pressure. We had a great chance with Fernando, even at that moment I wasn’t breathing. A balanced game and I want to congratulate both Milan and our team, I’m proud of them.”
Are the injured players a worry for the next few weeks?
“No, but I hope everything works out. Let’s hope everything goes well.”
