‘We managed to endure’… Raphinha hails his Barcelona team’s resilience after scoring against Benfica | OneFootball

FC Barcelona had a very difficult outing against SL Benfica last night in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 tie at Estadio de la Luz.

The Blaugranes had to play around 70 minutes with a numerical disadvantage, as Pau Cubarsi was sent off in the 22nd minute. However, Wojciech Szczesny’s heroics kept the Blaugranes in the game, and Raphinha was actually able to take advantage of a mistake from the hosts to get a 1-0 win for his side.

As Mundo Deportivo has reported, the Brazilian forward also talked to the media after the game. He admitted that his side understood that this game was going to be difficult, but the red card made it even more complicated:

“It’s impossible not to be tired after a match like this… We had a plan before the match, but the sending-off changed everything. The most important thing was that we managed to stay focused. We knew we had to suffer, and the key thing is that we came away with a positive result. I like to say that there are games where we will have to suffer, but the important thing is the victory.”

The winger further commented on how his side was able to remain competitive despite their numerical disadvantage:

“The red card changed the way we played. Personally, I knew the game would become more difficult and that we had to suffer. We managed to endure, defend well, and take a good result back to Barcelona.”

The Barcelona star was happy with the final result despite the hardships faced in this match:

“We knew we would have one or two chances, and we had to stay focused. We were aware that we needed to take those chances, and we did. We came away with a positive result.”

Lastly, he also hailed Szczesny’s performance between the sticks and revealed why he, in particular, was happy with this performance:

“What a game he had!… I have him in my fantasy team, and he gave me a lot of points today.”

As has been the case so often this season, Raphinha was once again key for Barcelona in this crucial game. Hopefully, he will be able to make these contributions in the coming weeks and months as well to help his team end the season on a successful note.