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Chipciu on 'positives and negatives' for Steaua

FC Steaua Bucureşti forward Alexandru Chipciu reflects on making amends for his missed penalty with a later winner against visitors PFC Ludogorets Razgrad.

Steaua goalscorer Alexandru Chipciu battles with Yordan Minev of Ludogorets
Steaua goalscorer Alexandru Chipciu battles with Yordan Minev of Ludogorets ©Cosmin Iftode

FC Steaua Bucureşti forward Alexandru Chipciu rues missed penalty
Chipciu glad he "made amends" with the winner against PFC Ludogorets Razgrad
Steaua coach Constantin Gâlcă calls Lucian Sânmărtean "a magician"
Cosmin Moți says Ludogorets "do not need to be desperate" in the return leg

Alexandru Chipciu, Steaua forward
It was a game with positives and negatives. I am sorry I missed the penalty, but it's good that I made amends and scored near the end. I am sorry for disappointing my team-mates, I apologise for that. I am glad I managed to score and, in the end, we won.

Now we have a small advantage because we scored and they did not. A goal in Sofia would mean a lot to us. The second leg is the match of the season for us. Qualifying would mean a great chance for us to play with the most prestigous players in the world.

Constantin Gâlcă, Steaua coach
We played very well, it was a pity we didn't score more goals. The absence of Chipciu [for the second leg] due to suspension is a big loss for us. He is a very important player in our approach. Tonight he scored from a difficult position. Sânmărtean was magnificent, he's like a magician when he has the ball. I wanted to have superiority on the left side so that's why I put him there.

Łukasz Szukała and Alexandru Chipciu
Łukasz Szukała and Alexandru Chipciu©Cosmin Iftode

The Ludogorets players are good, but ours are better. This win is a step forward, nothing more, so we are going to go to Sofia, to attack and to control and win the match.

Georgi Dermendzhiev, Ludogorets coach
It was a very difficult game, a tactical battle between the two teams. Both teams deserved to score, but in the end only Steaua did. Now Steaua have a 1-0 lead, but there's still the second leg to play. In Sofia it will be another match. I don't think it's important who will play in the second leg. Steaua have plenty of players who can replace Chipciu.

Cosmin Moți, Ludogorets defender
It's very painful when you lose in the final minutes of a game, but we still have one leg to play. Steaua took a step towards the UEFA Champions League group stage, but qualification isn't assured yet. We knew that Steaua were a strong team and the fact they played better than us is reflected in the scoreline. We were weak in attack, but we still have 90 minutes to play for and there is no need for us to be desperate. In Sofia it will be a totally different game.

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