What they said: Best reaction from Italy vs Belgium

Sport360 staff 03:33 14/06/2016
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  • Ecstasy: Graziano Pelle celebrates his late goal.

    Italy beat Belgium on Monday evening in both sides’ opening game of Euro 2016 thanks to goals from Emanuele Giaccherini and Graziano Pelle.

    Sport360 rounds-up the best of the post-match reaction from Lyon on a chastening night for Marc Wilmots’ Red Devils.

    Antonio Conte, Italy head coach

    “I’ve been repeating from the beginning – and I’m not one to tell lies – that this is a group first and foremost of men, and then of footballers. That’s important because in a tournament like this you need an alchemy of people who get on well together, and the biggest satisfaction for me tonight is to see how happy they all were, including those on the bench. There’s a very good spirit in this squad.

    Having said that, we’ve got to be happy today, a bit happy tomorrow and then we have to prepare for Sweden because the memory of two years ago is still fresh, when we did well against England and then lost [to Costa Rica in the group stage]. That’s a wound which remains in the minds of our players and fans.

    We have big intentions and our objective remains the same, to get into the last 16. The objective is to get where we deserve to be, without any regrets. I think the fans are pleased when they see 23 players giving everything on the field and being willing to spill blood.”

    Emanuele Giaccherini, Italy midfielder

    “Today is a fantastic day for me, but I’m also very happy for the team, for Italy, for the entire nation. We proved today that what happens on the pitch is what counts. The coach told us beforehand that we had to prove ourselves on the pitch, and today we did. We mustn’t lower our guard; we have to keep the bar high because the level here is very high.

    Every match is a story in itself and it will be difficult from here on in. We need to be there to help each other, even in the difficult moments, as even today there were some difficulties at times. But we have to know how to suffer, how to help each other and be united and compact.”

    Marc Wilmots, Belgium head coach

    “[Romelu] Lukaku didn’t have a great night and [Kevin] De Bruyne can do better too, but now is not the time to talk about that. We need to club together to qualify for the last 16.

    “I don’t know how to answer [about De Bruyne’s performance]. If I had an answer, I would give it. Maybe he was tired after a long season. He was prepared for this game and I think Kevin has given so much for the national team over the last four years and is always capable of scoring from a free-kick or delivering a killer ball.

    “I’m not sure if you saw the second half like I did, but they had ten men behind the ball and it’s hard to get through.

    “If you make mistakes at this level, you pay dearly. But nothing is lost. We’ve got two games to reach the knockout stage, which is the aim when you are in the group, and that is what we are going to try to do.”

    Thibaut Courtois, Belgium goalkeeper

    “We knew it was going to be a tough game and they defended really well. I don’t think they created any real clear-cut chances to kill off the game. The last goal was a counterattack and it came from a second ball, which we weren’t solid enough to go and claim. They were quicker to it than us, so on Saturday we need to go out there and do more.

    The first match is always very important, especially against a team like Italy – if you win that, then you’re in a good position. But we’re lucky the other match ended 1-1. Now we have to win the other two matches and be a better team.”

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