The reactions of Magassa, Embolo and Zakaria after Benfica

Very disappointed to lose at the end of the suspense, after having led for a good part of the match, the two Monegasque midfielders and the striker stopped in the mixed zone to analyze the match.

A frustrating defeat. Despite great efforts, and after being in front on the scoreboard including ten against eleven, the AS Monaco players were forced to give in to Benfica (2-3). A scenario that Soungoutou Magassa, Breel Embolo and Denis Zakaria commented on to the media after the meeting. Excerpts ????️

Good evening Soungoutou. How do you feel after this cruel result?

It is certain that we are very disappointed to lose this match, because we wanted to win it. We gave everything, we fought for each other and unfortunately we lost today. But it doesn't matter, we're going to get back up, there's the championship coming up quickly and we're going to have to bounce back on Sunday in Marseille.

What was missing to win?

Maybe if we had stayed eleven against eleven, we could have won, but these are facts of the game. We played against a very good Benfica team, with great qualities and great players.

Unfavorable decisions? I don't want to talk about that, these are facts of the game that belong to the past, there's nothing we can do about it, so we'll have to raise our heads and continue with this state of mind.

Could you have delayed more?

This is not like us, even if sometimes we have to know how to adapt to situations. I think we gave the best of ourselves, and we just came up against a team that was very efficient and scored at the right times. We fought, but unfortunately it didn't pay off.

How did you lose track?

I think it's collectively that we weren't able to keep the result, we shouldn't blame any one player in particular. We are a team, we win together and we lose together! Despite everything, we are still in a good position in the standings, so we will have to play each match as if it were the last and give everything. I hope we go all the way and qualify.

The numerical inferiority was not felt at the moment…

Thanks to the physical trainers, we are in athletic shape. And then when someone is less good, we manage to replace them. We have great bench depth which allows us to make a difference when we come off the bench.

Tell us about your first goal with the pros!

I'm on a good run, even if I don't want to get carried away. It is important to always remain humble, work and be rigorous. I will make sure to continue like this, because I am on the right track.

A word on the next opponents in C1…

I don't know if the hardest part has started, because I'm focused on our goals personally. We have a very good team with great qualities, so we will have to play on that, give our all, and if we continue with this state of mind, I don't see why we couldn't go further in the competition .

Breel Embolo's reaction

Good evening Breel. Can we say that you blew a joker tonight?

No I wouldn't say that, because we wanted to win this match that we had in hand. I don't like talking about refereeing decisions, but when you get so many cards, I find it hard. Despite everything we stayed in the match and even scored the 2-1 goal! But we perhaps lacked lucidity at the end of the match, especially when you're racing ten against eleven, it's difficult.

However, we did not feel this numerical inferiority…

Us for sure, but behind it is the individual quality of a player like Angel Di Maria, who finished with two assists, which makes the difference. But hats off to us for having reacted in this way with ten men, because we had situations on the counter-attack.

I also think that Benfica no longer even hoped to win the match, but in the end they came away with the three points. We therefore come away frustrated from this evening, even if we showed a beautiful face of AS Monaco.

Can a scenario like this make you grow?

It especially hurts! Even more so when you invest a lot in view of the stakes. It was a good team against you once again, and you lost the match because of a few avoidable errors. And then it's frustrating to take three yellow cards for an action where it's the opposing defensive midfielder who must be penalized.

But we're not going to stay there, we have to refocus on ourselves because there are other matches coming up. We will have to take as many points as possible, and it starts in Marseille, where we will go to win.

Denis Zakaria's reaction

Good evening Denis. How do you feel after this meeting?

A lot of frustration, because it's a match where we could and should have taken three points, and unfortunately that's not the case.

What happens when you go to the referee and get the card?

It's a bit special, because I'm the captain and normally I'm supposed to be able to speak with the referee, but he didn't want to and gave me a yellow straight away. It's a shame to have such an attitude, because he turned his back whenever I wanted to talk.

Especially since you showed a beautiful face…

We showed that we have a lot of qualities, even ten against eleven. This is what we will have to remember from this game, even if there are not the three points at the end. We will have to find victory next time.

Is it fatigue or Angel Di Maria that makes you break down?

I think it's a bit of both. At ten it's obviously more complicated, and obviously Di Maria is an international class player, so he punished us with his qualities. Even if you go at him, he is able to make the difference, so it's difficult to manage, especially when outnumbered.

Could you have closed the game a little more?

I think once again we had a good match, even with ten players. Our goal was to bring home victory, but unfortunately we failed at the end. Overall in any case, we delivered a good performance.

What is your objective now in this C1?

Our primary goal remains to qualify for the play-offs, but if we finish in the Top 8, that will be a bonus. We will have to analyze this defeat and see what went wrong, because we took two somewhat identical goals at the end, so we will have to work on that, then concentrate on the championship.