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Casals delighted by Santa Coloma fairy tale

"From now on, I will think everything impossible is possible," said FC Santa Coloma No1 Eloy Casals after his late goal stunned FC Banants and sent the Andorran team through.

Santa Coloma keeper Eloy Casals is congratulated after his dramatic last-gasp intervention
Santa Coloma keeper Eloy Casals is congratulated after his dramatic last-gasp intervention ©Khachik Chakhoyan

FC Santa Coloma's players and coach were ecstatic after goalkeeper Eloy Casals swept them into the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round for the first time. Casals's 94th-minute strike, which came after FC Banants failed to deal with a free-kick into their penalty area, secured the Andorran team an away-goals victory, ending a run of three defeats at this nascent stage of Europe's top club competition.

Eloy Casals, Santa Coloma goalkeeper
It's a big success for us that we made it to the second qualifying round. [For the goal] I just went forward to support my team-mates and didn't even think that I could score. It's just how it is. Football is a game where there is room for surprises. When I took the shot I thought that someone else would add a touch, but it just went into the net. I have scored sometimes during training sessions, but I was very lucky today. What a win. I am very happy that I made our players and fans so delighted. From now on, I will think everything impossible is possible.

Marc Pujol, Santa Coloma captain
It's always nice when your work gives joy to someone. I actually don't realise yet what we've done. We need time for that as it's a new chapter in our club's history. In the last minute some kind of a power made us all go forwards. It was a really hard match and our opponents were strong, but we deserved this victory. I wish that everyone could enjoy something like that once in their lifes. At some point you win for the first time and you just can't describe the feeling. We are so happy to go through to the next stage for the first time.

Richard Imbernón, Santa Coloma coach
I'm proud of my players and don't know how to explain what I feel now. I am thankful to the lads. It's true that Banants are stronger than us, but we showed great character and thanks to our self-belief we got through to the next round for the first time in the UEFA Champions League. It's a big achievement for our small European team.

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