Paris Saint-Germain manager Luis Enrique praised his side for qualifying for the quarter-final stage of the UEFA Champions League while also insisting Liverpool were deserving of progression too.
Enrique exhumed pride with his side’s performance as they came from a goal down from last week’s first leg to beat the Premier League leaders 1-0 at Anfield on Tuesday – while also winning 4-1 in the penalty shootout.
“Both of the teams deserved to go to the next phase, they play better than us here, but I think my team at Anfield, in a special stadium, showed great personality and character,” the Spaniard said.
“We tried to play our best, but it was difficult as they’re so intense. Both teams deserved to qualify. The character and personality, even when we shoot at the penalty shootout they showed great character. I think it shows clearly the team we are.”
France’s domestic leaders PSG have never won the Europe’s premiere competition, losing to Bayern Munich in the 2020 final, while 2019 winners Liverpool were tipped as the favourites in the tie after topping the table through the eight-game league phase.
“When the draw told us about the match against Liverpool and PSG, both managers thought the same – one of the best matches you can watch in Europe,” Enrique added.
“I think both teams were great.”We are happy and confident to go to the next phase.”
PSG were also showered praise from pundits for their hard-fought victory.
“You’ve seen four perfect penalties under extreme pressure, you’ve got to give PSG big credit,” former England striker Alan Shearer said on the Amazon Prime broadcast.
“The disappointment of losing that first game and playing really, really well and coming back to Anfield and soaking up pressure and then taking it to extra time and penalties and seeing those four perfect penalties, they’ve really put in a magnificent effort over the two games and they’ll say they deserve to go through.”
