Spalletti: We earned last-16 berth

Zenit St Petersburg boss Luciano Spalletti feels that his side fully deserves their place in the last 16 of the Champions League.

The Russian outfit sealed their spot in the knockout stages thanks to a 0-0 draw with Porto on Tuesday, the point enough to secure second place in Group G behind APOEL.

And speaking in the wake of the game, Spalletti believes his side have done enough to qualify ahead of the Portuguese giants.

“From my point of view, it’s not a miracle,” Spalletti said.

“I believe that finishing the year at the top of the league and qualifying for the Champions League knockout phase was the maximum we could have achieved.”

“The players fully deserve this, they have been doing their best for the whole year.”

Zenit finished with nine points from six matches in Group G, one point ahead of Porto who had to settle for a place in the Europa League round of 32.