– Roma pounce on mistake –
“We knew that sooner or later they would make a mistake and we’d pounce on it,” said Roma coach Di Francesco.
“If we face any opponent with this attitude and determination, we can go far.”
“Roma made the most of a single moment,” said Shakhtar coach Paulo Fonseca.
“Dzeko of course was a key player, but apart from his goal they didn’t have a chance, we had possession. If we had finished off the chances we had in the first leg the match would already have been over.”
The first 6 #UCL quarter-finalists:
Juventus ??
Liverpool ???????
Man. City ???????
Real Madrid ??
Roma ??
Sevilla ??Who are you backing to go all the way? ? pic.twitter.com/V0B17LMFwo
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) March 13, 2018
Roma held on, and after Italy’s shock failure to qualify for the World Cup, their progress to the last eight along with Juventus is a boost for the country.
There have not been two Italian clubs in the quarter-finals of the Champions League since 2006/07, when Roma joined eventual winners AC Milan in the last eight.
There will also be at least three Italian coaches in the quarter-finals — Di Francesco, Massimiliano Allegri of Juventus and Vincenzo Montella of Sevilla.
Di Francesco added: “I spoke with Montella a few days ago and we said we’d meet in the final.”
Antonio Conte could make that four with his Chelsea side facing Barcelona on Wednesday.