Monaco manager Didier Deschamps was ecstatic after seeing his side stun Real Madrid to reach the Champions League semi-finals.
“Everybody writes their own story, and the players are writing a superb page for Monaco and all of French football,” said Deschamps.
“It’s proof that in football, anything can happen – you just have to believe until the end.
“It wasn’t easy but we deserved it. This is exceptional.”
Striker Fernando Morientes – loaned by Madrid to Monaco – gave the French side real hope after being 4-1 down in the first leg, scoring Monaco’s second goal before Ludovic Giuly sealed it.
Morientes said: “This is an historic achievement for the club, but we must not just stop at this as we can go a lot further.
“It was a superb game, we created plenty of chances, scored three good goals and deserved the win.”
Real manager Carlos Queiroz believed Morientes role was crucial for Monaco.
“We have to accept the result because they scored three goals and I think the Morientes goal was crucial because it gave them confidence,” he said.
“This is a very painful result for the whole team. The players are very down, especially considering we went 1-0 up.”
Captain Raul left expressed th extent of the players’ misery.
“There are no words to describe the disappointment in the dressing room at the moment,” he said.
And Queiroz added: “There are two places which are similar in life – hell and football.”
