Benfica manager José Mourinho has admitted his side had to take major risks to secure a dramatic 4-2 victory over Real Madrid and clinch a place in the UEFA Champions League play-offs.
The Portuguese champions sealed qualification in stunning fashion on Wednesday night, with goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin scoring a last-gasp goal to confirm Benfica’s progression and deny Real Madrid automatic qualification.
With the match finely balanced at 3-2, a single goal for the Spanish giants would have been enough to hand them the final automatic spot ahead of Manchester City. Instead, Benfica pushed forward in the dying moments and were rewarded with a decisive strike.
“Winning or losing games in the final moment, with the final play, happens many times, but to win you have to take risks,” Mourinho told UEFA after the match.
“You think the opportunity will come, then it doesn’t, so you have to change a few things. In the end, one ball for them could have made it 3-3, and even then we would have been out.”
Mourinho stressed the significance of the result, especially given the opponent.
“To beat Real Madrid is important and significant. At that moment, we had to give everything,” he said.
Speaking on Trubin’s extraordinary goal, the Benfica boss revealed it was not entirely unexpected.
“We knew he could do it. In the game at the Dragão two weeks ago, Trubin was also there at the final action and headed the ball, but it was blocked,” Mourinho explained.
“You have to put the ball in the box. It was a spectacular goal and, regardless of what happens next in the competition, it puts us into the next round. It was a historic moment against Real Madrid.”
Mourinho added that the qualification carries both financial and symbolic value for the club.
“It’s important for several reasons — economically important for Benfica, and even more so from a prestige point of view,” he said
