Vitoria proud of Benfica despite Bayern defeat

Benfica coach Rui Vitoria described his pride at the performance of his team despite losing the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final 1-0 to Bayern Munich on Tuesday.

An early header by Arturo Vidal proved to be the only goal of a tight match, with Benfica now having a difficult task in the second leg at the Estadio da Luz next week.

Benfica will also go into the return fixture without their prolific striker Jonas, who has scored 32 goals in all competitions this season, and saw his side’s best chance saved by Manuel Neuer.

“I’m a proud coach,” insisted Vitoria after the match.

“I just hope the people in the [Estadio da Luz] scream the same way as they shouted here.

“We’re going to be in the round until the end, that I can guarantee. We hope to score goals in the second leg.

“[Even] without Jonas, for sure we will still have a competitive team.”

Jonas was disappointed with his missed chance but insisted his team can qualify for the semi-finals.

The striker will miss the second leg after picking up a second-half yellow card, his third of the tournament.

“I had the opportunity, but the ball did not go in and it stays in our memory,” the striker said.

“[We will] try to make a good game in Lisbon.

“We have 27 quality players in the squad and we will surely make a good game.”