Goalscorer Van Persie confident of Fenerbahce progression

Fenerbahce striker Robin van Persie believes his first goal for the club has set the Turkish side on their way to the UEFA Europa League’s group stages.

The Dutchman opened his Fener account in the play-off first leg against Atromitos on Thursday, angling home a late header to send his side back to Istanbul with a slender advantage. 

Having crashed out of qualifying for the UEFA Champions League, Van Persie is confident Fener can finish the job this time and reach the next round.

“It’s definitely a good result but I think it is open until the end,” he said afterwards.

“To get that one goal I think is very important, it’s a great result. We need to know that, while we are in a good condition, it’s only halfway.”

The former Manchester United man – who completed a big-money switch to Turkey in the close-season – also brushed off claims he fouled his marker in the build-up to the winner.

“I used my body and my shoulder. Sometimes you need to use your body in a smart way,” Van Persie added.

“I think the referee made the right decision. There was no foul, I used my body.

“I would say they are a dangerous team. Four or five times we had the opportunity in the first half but could not take them.

“It was an important goal for us to get. We kept going until the end of the match and, obviously we were a little bit lucky, but we got our chance.”