Barça progress 'never in doubt'

By Andrew Haslam

FC Barcelona coach coach Radomir Antic cut a satisfied figure after seeing his side qualify for the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals thanks to a 2-0 home win against Bayer 04 Leverkusen, a result which also guaranteed the Spanish side first place in Group A.

Praise for Reiziger
Despite missing a number of key players through injury, goals in either half from Javier Saviola and Frank de Boer secured Barcelona's 12th victory in 13 European games this season, and Antic was understandably delighted with the way his side had performed. He was particularly pleased with Michael Reiziger, who was forced to play in an unfamiliar left-back role following injuries to Phillip Cocu and Fernando Navarro and the ineligibility of Juan Pablo Sorín.

'Very positive'
"Tonight I tried to give some B-team players some time on the pitch and the match was positive," he said. "[Michael] Reiziger was very good and we're going to play him more than ever now. Our best players tonight were Reiziger, [Gaizka] Mendieta and Xavi [Hernández]; they were key players for us."

'More choice'
Antic went on to say that the win had given his side some breathing space, and that he hoped that at least some of his injured players would be available for the quarter-finals. "We won today to win time and I hope I'll have more players to choose from in the next phase," he said. In addition to Cocu and Navarro, neither of whom are likely to be available until the semi-finals at the earliest, Barcelona were also without Carlos Puyol and Luis Enrique, but still produced a controlled display.

'Just pleased'
With qualification assured with a game to spare, Antic allowed himself to look ahead to the quarter-finals. "I haven't thought about playing a Spanish rival, I'm just pleased about being through," he said. "I don't know what the supporters thought of the match, but they must be happy because [our] qualification was never in danger."

Signs of progress
In contrast, Thomas Hörster, who saw his already eliminated Leverkusen team go close twice in the opening 15 minutes through Bulgarian striker Dimitar Berbatov, was disappointed with the result but saw a number of positive signs in his side's performance.

'Generally happy'
"The first 30 minutes I saw what I wanted; lots of stamina and lots of chances, but no goals and you pay for that at this level," he said. "In general, I'm happy with what I saw. Personally, I don't think it was a boring match and I thought we were playing much better, as Berbatov had good chances but didn't score. However, that's more than what we're used to having."

Focus on the league
Leverkusen also had a number of key absentees for the game, with the likes of Diego Placente and Bernd Schneider starting on the bench while Carsten Ramelow, Ulf Kirsten and Oliver Neuville all remained in Germany as Hörster kept one eye firmly on the weekend 1. Bundesliga game with VfL Wolfsburg.

Placente precaution
"Placente could have played, but in yesterday's training session he had muscle problems so I left him out. I didn't plan to use Schneider [who came on as a late substitute] because he had neck problems, but then things changed," said Hörster.

'Anything’s possible'
The Leverkusen coach also paid tribute to his opponents, and admitted his team had been defeated by the better side. "I can't say if Barcelona will be the Champions League winners, because they're a top quality team and in football anything can happen," he said.