How did you manage to keep a lid on the tremendous pressure you were under, especially considering how good your opponents were?
That's when World Cup winners lead the team and get everyone else fired up for it. We were very careful at the back. We were afraid of their counter-attacks because we knew they were going to play that way. They shifted the ball around quickly as I asked them to and then got the ball into the box. It's a great win. Before you joined, there was a World Cup winner [Mats Hummels] regularly left out of the team and Angelino β who bossed the flank today β playing at centre-back. It wasn't so easy to put everyone in the right position.
I always rated Hummels as an opponent when I used to watch him playing in the Bundesliga or for Germany. He's an immense player. Highly intelligent too. Forget about the footballer everyone is familiar with. I'm talking about the man. I told him, 'You should stay here because even if you don't play much, you have to lead the team.
The way you train is exemplary. Treat it well because just look at Hummels and how much he is still earning. Could these last two games Eldor Shomurodov has played change his future? Everyone likes him and the fans love him because he always puts his heart and soul into it.
I had him at Cagliari and he's a great guy. Always smiling. I often get angry with him so I told him, 'If you leave, who am I going to get angry with? I said to him: 'You need to make something happen.
