Azerbaijan coach praises Portugal

Despite the fact that Portugal won 3-0, the Coach stressed that they lost to the second-best team in Europe.

"Portugal is the second best team in Europe and the fourth-best in the world. They were runners-up at the Euro 2004 and recently were only put into fourth place at the World Cup by the hosts?- Germany," explained Diniyev after the match.

The Azeri boss was impressed at the fact that Portugal "...is a team of leaders. They have world class players who don't shy away from responsibility when it comes down to the crunch. That does make a big difference on the pitch," he added.

"My players did what they could to seek out a win and weren't afraid to take Portugal on despite their power. I believe that the spectators were treated to a good game and I congratulate the winners as much as I congratulate my men for the spirit they showed," he concluded. APM

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