Okan Buruk: We have experienced the pain of this before

Galatasaray defeated Italian side Juventus with a historic 5-2 score in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 play-off, coming back from a 2-1 deficit. Galatasaray's new signing Noa Lang left his mark on the night by scoring two goals. For the visiting team, Cabal was sent off after receiving a second yellow card in the 67th minute. The return leg of the tie will be played in Turin on Wednesday, February 25.

Speaking at the press conference held after the match, Galatasaray manager Okan Buruk stated the following:

"We will be happier after we advance"

"First of all, of course, we are incredibly happy. It is a night where we also need to keep our feet on the ground. We achieved an important victory. There is a significant effort involved. Not just from us, but from our fans as well. We had a very beautiful night, and we provided one. It is a very important night for the players, for me, and for Galatasaray. To crown this, we need to play the same way in the second match. We need to celebrate after playing the second match. Right now, there is self-confidence and happiness. We will be happier after we advance."

"There is competition among the players, and this will reflect positively on Galatasaray"

We have the Konyaspor match in the league. We need to play with the same desire and concentration. There is a tough fixture list, but one of our best assets is our squad depth. Our squad depth provided important support in winning today's match. There is also competition among the players. This will reflect positively on Galatasaray.

"We controlled the game"

I congratulated them for the first half. We were the more dominant side, but we conceded two very unlucky goals. We controlled the game. The players put in a lot of effort. We did well in winning the ball back. I told them that if we continued playing the same way, we would win...

"A league match awaits us where we must put up an important fight for the championship"

The important thing was that we found the second goal very early. With that self-confidence came the 3rd goal and the red card. We played the game very dominantly. We also finished the match with great desire. We did not enter the mindset that the score was enough for us. This is what I want most as well. Getting the score was very important. We have experienced the pain of this before. That is why experiencing the opposite is a great happiness for me. A league match awaits us where we must put up an important fight for the championship.

"We experienced the pain of this in the previous 2 years while playing with 10 men"

We never entered the mindset that 'this score is enough.' We kept looking for the 3-2, 4-2, and 5-2. Because we experienced the pain of this in the previous 2 years while playing with 10 men. That is why we kept pushing for the score. Juventus played very well after going down to 10 men in their match against Inter. We changed the formation, we changed the players. We were very effective in the opponent's half. Juventus is a very important team; they will create a good atmosphere in front of their fans. We will not celebrate before playing the second match.

"We see that Juventus has problems with their squad"

We had a good transfer window. We have a large and good squad. The competition is very high, and success will come from this competition. It is very valuable that these players are close to each other in quality when you list them one after another. We started with a different 11 in the league match and a different one here. This is also important for me. We see that Juventus has problems with their squad. That is why a large squad is a very important thing.

"For the first time, a Turkish team scored 5 against Juventus!"

We have played big matches very well over the last three years. Tottenham, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Atletico Madrid... We play very well against important teams. We can reach the round of 16; this is a very important motivation. On one hand, there is the country coefficient, and we need to contribute to the country coefficient. These victories are also important for Turkish football psychologically. We are thinking about this as well. You never know who will go where in the Champions League. We will see as we play. I think every team has a chance to reach the final right now. For the first time, a Turkish team scored 5 against Juventus! Also, it is the first time Juventus has conceded 5 in the Champions League."

News Source: 12punto