We made it three clean sheets out of three in the Champions League so far this season, and five in our last six European home games, as we saw off Shakhtar Donetsk in a narrow encounter on Tuesday.
The defensive performance was crucial in earning the three points, as the first half own goal from visiting keeper Dmytro Riznyk turned out to be the only goal of the game.
Once again Gabriel was instrumental in our defensive display. “It was a difficult game,” he said afterwards, (but) we take the three points. We are happy to play at home in front of our fans. To be able to give this for them is good for us and the club.
“We worked very hard, but of course it’s good to keep a clean sheet and take all three points. We are so happy.”
For the second game in a row there was necessary defensive reshuffling as well. After William Saliba was sent off on Saturday, both Ben White and Riccardo Calafiori were taken off on Tuesday, but Gabi was pleased with how the team kept their shape.
“Everyone organises!” he said. “Everyone needs to talk to adapt – we did very well and kept a clean sheet.”
