First team

SAMPAOLI: "WE PUT IN A HUGE EFFORT BUT WEREN'T ABLE TO FINISH IT"

14/03/2017

"The fact that we're not playing like we were before is to do with me, I'm the manager", added Sampaoli

Jorge Sampaoli analysed the team's elimination from the Champions League after losing 2-0 to Leicester: "Conceding the first goal meant that they defended very deep. We put in a huge effort but weren't able to finish it. Their goalkeeper had a great tie but we have to look at the enormous effort the players made, because with that effort they deserved to have the opportunity to go through".

Sampaoli, when it came to analysing both legs, argued that "calling it a failure is an easy title. The fact that now we're not playing as we have been until today is definitely to do with me, I'm the manager, but I give a lot of credit to what the players did, they were always searching".

"We persevered a lot but unfortunately we didn't manage to score"

The Argentine coach evaluated the team's efforts and the key aspects of the tie: "The team was on top of them for the whole second half, pushing them back and we persevered a lot but unfortunately we didn't manage to score. We lost the tie ourselves by not being able to score more goals in Seville. The two missed penalties hurt us a lot. Football has these things that get resolved in the little details and we were worse at that aspect".

Finally, the Argentine gave his thoughts on Samir Nasri's red card and his future: "The need to score in any way possible and the tension of the moment surely led to Nasri making a mistake. His nature as a footballer helped us a lot and I don't know the motive of the sending off because I can't see it. He gives us a lot of ímpetus and hopefully he'll stay".

Sampaoli left a final thought on a very tough day for the team: "I don't know where I see myself in the future. Right now I can only think that a dream of mine has gone".