Magath commends strong Schalke showing

Felix Magath was full of praise for his Schalke side after watching them book their last 16 spot in the Champions League.

The Bundesliga club continued their rich vein of form in Europe on Wednesday with a 3-0 defeat of French side Lyon.

The victory at the Veltins Arena, set up courtesy of a brace from Jan-Klaas Huntelaar and a goal from Jefferson Farfan, saw Schalke leapfrog Lyon at the top of the Group B standings.

“We were in great form from the first minute onwards and had two or three early chances,” Magath said.

“Our strikers combined perfectly with each other; it was a beautiful match for us.”

“For many weeks people have said we were dead and buried, but now we’ll be playing in the Champions League next spring.”

“This is a great success for us and we’re very happy about it, but this does not help us in the Bundesliga.”

Despite the loss, Lyon also progress to the knockout stages after Benfica slumped to a 3-0 defeat in Israel against Hapoel Tel Aviv.

But qualification failed to the brighten the mood of coach Claude Puel.

“We have mixed feelings tonight. We’re through but we won’t think about that before tomorrow,” Puel said.

“The main thing is the disappointment. We’re disappointed to have played that way tonight.”

“Even if everything is possible in the last game (against Hapoel Tel-Aviv), tonight’s defeat hurts.”