Roger Schmidt: "We believe it is possible to turn things around"

PREVIEW

Following the defeat at Estádio da Luz (0-2), Benfica must complete a comeback against Inter at 8 pm on Wednesday , April 19. Assuring that he did not see the eagles inferior to the opponent in the 1st leg, Roger Schmidt stressed that the semi-finals are at the distance of a "top-notch display".  

Benfica is at a disadvantage after losing, at home, against Inter (0-2). Balance and patience are key to secure qualification?

Yes, we need that. But we also need a top-notch display. We missed a great opportunity to achieve a better result at our stadium. We have to accept the result of the first leg, and now playing with such a disadvantage at the home of an experienced and quality opponent makes everything more difficult for us. But in football, anything is possible. We've already shown this season that we can play well in all competitions. We showed a lot of confidence and played an attacking game without opening spaces in the defense. That is the most important thing for tomorrow [Wednesday]. We have to play with tactical balance, patience, motivation and belief that it is possible to turn things around.

Inter has the third-best defense in the Champions League. How can Benfica overcome this obstacle?

We are obliged to score goals or else we are out of the Champions League. We have already shown several times this season that we have the ability to score them away from home or in very important games. We created some chances at home, but we couldn't take them. Tomorrow [Wednesday] we need to be tactically balanced. It will be important to go in focused on what we have to do. We can't just play with motivation and emotion. We need a clear head and to recover our tactical intelligence. That is what we have lacked in the last few games. Tomorrow [Wednesday] is the time to recover that, so we don't get eliminated. 

Do you believe in the comeback?

Of course I do. I believe a lot in my team, and in soccer anything is possible. It's a difficult situation because it's not 50/50. Inter won at our place, 2-0, and they have a budget that is double ours. But that doesn't mean we don't have a chance to qualify. We have to believe, put on a great display, we are focused, and then we'll see if we can turn this situation around.

Do you have in your possession tactical and technical data that lead you to believe that it is possible to make it to the semi-finals?

Just look at our season and what we've done with these same players. If we put in so many good performances against great opponents, then of course we did. The statistics are great for us. The ones for the last game did not indicate a clear 2-0 for Inter, but a balanced duel. We have arguments to believe in ourselves. If we don't have confidence after what we have done this season, it is impossible to have confidence. Turning it around is difficult, but it's far from impossible.