Bayern were held 1-1 at home by Zenit St. Petersburg in the UEFA Cup semi-final first leg, and just as against Getafe in the previous round, the Bavarians must now score at least once in the return match. Coach Ottmar Hitzfeld bemoaned his side’s shortage of ruthlessness in front of goal: “We wanted to pass the ball into the net. We lacked the last ounce of determination.“
Reaction to Bayern v Zenit St. Petersburg:
Ottmar Hitzfeld: ”We went a goal up early on and that gave us a real boost, but we did poorly with a few chances on the break. We wanted to pass the ball into the net. We lacked the last ounce of determination. We were much the better team in the first half, but the second half initially belonged to St Petersburg. We fought our way back into it and created chances of our own. Lucio couldn’t do anything about the own goal, it all happened very fast. St. Petersburg showed what they’re capable of in Leverkusen. They’re Russian champions and they can play football. But they’ll attack us at home, so we’ll have a chance or two.“
Mark van Bommel: ”We were outstanding in the first half, but we didn’t play well after half-time, although we still made chances, and you’ve got to be putting them away. St Petersburg only created chances when we eased back.“
Lukas Podolski: ”The job now is to score away from home. It’ll be tough, but it’s possible. We played well enough. Unfortunately we let in a goal, otherwise we might have had chances on the break and made it 2-0. We needn’t worry because we’re the better team, but we have to go out and show it on the field of play.“
Bastian Schweinsteiger: ”We had plenty of chances but didn’t take them. It would have been much better if we’d led 2-0 at half-time. We let them back into the match after half-time, and that was obviously a mistake.“
Dick Advocaat (Zenit coach): ”I’m very happy with the way we played in the second half. We were still a little nervous in the first half, and I don’t know why. We gave away a few chances, but Bayern were outstanding too. Three of my players are now suspended for the return. That won’t be easy for us, especially as we don’t have the same resources as Bayern.“
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