Paulo Freitas after Barcelona loss: “We gave it our all on the pitch” | OneFootball

FC Porto suffered their first defeat in the Champions League, losing to FC Barcelona 5-3 at the Dragão Arena in the 5th round of Group A.

After the match, Paulo Freitas thanked “everyone who was here today” and acknowledged that “this was not the result we wanted to deliver to them.” Proud of the commitment shown by the national back-to-back champions, the coach emphasized that the players “work hard and work very well,” and that the focus is now on “reversing” this outcome next Sunday (7:00 PM, Porto Canal), away at CH Carvalhos.

A look at the match“Thank you to everyone who was here today; this was not the result we wanted to deliver to them. We are sad, but we move on and continue our work. It’s a step back on our journey, but we will remain humble and keep working, as we only lost three points that we really wanted to win. It was a very balanced game in the first half and we conceded the first goal from a well-executed play, but it came from a rebound that punished us. Then we conceded two goals from second balls and the team faltered a bit. We tried to react, but mostly with our hearts. Today, set pieces didn’t go in, but they will on other occasions. Then there was a clear goal that the refereeing team didn’t see. It was the third time we’ve had this refereeing team, and in the previous two games we didn’t like their work either. But that’s how it is, we have to fight against many adversities, and some we can’t control. All that’s left is the feeling that we left everything on the rink, and that’s what characterizes the DNA of our Club.”

“We didn’t start the season well, we admit that, but we are getting to know each other better and better, and I am immensely proud to lead this group of players. They work hard and work very well, and that’s what we will continue to do. To overturn a negative result, you have to work, stay focused, united, and connected. And this team is connected. It’s a small step back, but we’re still halfway through this Champions League campaign and we’re well positioned. Now we have to focus on the league and then go to Barcelona to do what they did here.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.