Pafos FC manager Juan Carlos Carcedo on Thursday allowed himself to dream of qualification for the Champions League’s knockout rounds after the Cypriot champions pulled off an unlikely victory over Spanish side Villarreal the previous night.
Speaking to Spanish radio station Marca, he said the club’s chairman Roman Dubov already has his eyes firmly on the prospect of continuing this year’s European adventure past the end of the league phase in January.
“He is already telling me that being among the top 24 is not enough, that we need to get into the top eight,” he said, with teams placed between 9th place and 24th place in the league phase qualifying for the knockout phase playoff round and those in the top eight progressing directly to the last 16.
Of Wednesday’s victory, he said that to beat a team from Spain, his home country, is “a huge joy”, before evaluating the match.
“[Villarreal] started strong, they had two clear chances, but we adapted and defended well in a medium- to low-block. At half-time, we talked about how if we stayed in the game, our chances would come, and that is exactly what happened at the start of the second half,” he said.
He added, “sometimes, football rewards those who know how to wait for their moment”.
Asked whether Villarreal may have underestimated Pafos FC, he said “I do not think so”, and added, “it is understandable that when you are superior, you try to dominate, but we knew how to close spaces and exploit their anxiety”.
“We have a smaller squad due to restrictions on foreign player permits, but we know how to compete. In the domestic league, we are more aggressive, but in Europe, we have learned how to suffer and be consistent,” he said.
He then went on to speak about the journey Pafos FC have been on in recent years.
“Two years ago, we had won nothing. Now, we have a league title and a cup, and we are in the Champions League. Pafos FC should look to Villarreal as an example, a club which has slowly developed until it could compete at the highest level,” he said.
Wednesday night’s victory was Pafos FC’s first ever in the Champions League proper and is the first time any Cypriot team has beaten Spanish opposition in Europe’s premier competition.
The game finished 1-0 on the night, with Dutch centre-half Derrick Luckassen scoring the game’s only goal.
He rose highest to nod a Ken Sema corner into Villarreal’s net and send the almost 8,000 Paphites packed into the Alphamega Stadium into pandemonium in the first minute of the second half.
Pafos FC now sit 20th in the league phase table, and are now rubbing shoulders in that table with some of European football’s biggest names, with five points from their opening four fixtures putting them level on points with 1988 champions PSV Eindhoven and 2004 finalists AS Monaco, whom they will face next.
They also sit above Italian champions Napoli, twice winners Juventus, and four-time winners Ajax in the table.
Pafos FC will hope to continue their European form into the league, with a tricky fixture away at Anorthosis up next for them on Sunday.
They will then return to action after the international break with a home fixture against Aris Limassol on November 21, before returning to Champions League action with a home tie against AS Monaco at the Alphamega Stadium on November 26.
After facing AS Monaco, they will travel to Turin to face Juventus on December 10 and to London to face Chelsea on January 21, before playing their final league phase game at home against Slavia Prague on January 28.
