Laudrup Surprised, Atletico & Villarreal Eliminations

Getafe coach Michael Laudrup told the press that he was surprised that both Atletico Madrid and Villarreal were eliminated the UEFA Cup against teams that they would normally beat.

Laudrup revealed that he didn't expect Atletico and Villarreal to be eliminated at this early stage of the competition, and stated that it "seems like things have changed," after his team, Getafe, thrashed AEK Athens 3-0.

"I don't need any praise. It has been a long time that I have been saying this, everyone can say what they want," he declared. "Atletico and Villarreal have been eliminated, Getafe is the only [Spanish] team remaining in the UEFA Cup. It seems that things are changing."

The Danish football legend also spoke about their next UEFA Cup opponents, Benfica, who are coached by a well-known Spanish figure in Jose Antonio Camacho.

"It is okay, they are a very important team, one of the big clubs of Europe, and our team deserve to play a team like this at this stage of the competition," he said.

He also commented about the goal Cosmin Contra scored from the penalty spot, that he dedicated to his father, who passed away only moments before the match started.

"It was 100% Cosmin Contra's decision to take the penalty. Obviously he was in the starting eleven, and I told him to decide. In the end he decided to play the match," he concluded.(source: goal)