[dukeofdavinci]

Spalletti: No celebrations yet Tuesday 19 February, 2008

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Luciano Spalletti has warned Roma not to rest on their laurels, as 2-1 is not a big advantage to take to Spain.

“We certainly showed maturity and learned from our previous mistakes. It was tough to concede so early against a great team like Real and you risk letting in bucketloads,” said the Coach.

Raul had given Madrid the lead just eight minutes in, but David Pizarro and Amantino Mancini turned it around.

“We were patient and waited for the right moment, kept playing our game and it was an open encounter. I think Roma deserved the win.

“Real did well to pass the ball around quickly in our rather dense midfield and that can cause problems, but we tried to speed the play up too and had several great scoring opportunities.”

The Giallorossi have been struggling of late in Serie A, but showed a newfound maturity in the Champions League.

“Today I didn’t get angry much, as the team did everything so well. A Coach always tries to give his contribution to the side and we knew Real were very dangerous on the flanks, so with those qualities it is not always our mistake that causes a goal.”

The second leg is at the Bernabeu on March 5 and Spalletti is already gearing up his squad.

“It will be a whole other game and we need another splendid performance. We cannot rest on our laurels.”

aye, skipper, i didnt celebrate that much after the final whistle coz my mind was already alternating between what happened last season and the future game in spain.