Athletic Coach Ernesto Valverde felt his men “controlled” most of the Europa League match, despite Sassuolo winning 3-0.
The Neroverdi were making their absolute debut in UEFA competition, but looked like old hands with a spectacular victory.
“We controlled most of the first half in a pretty clear fashion,” said Valverde in his Press conference.
Athletic Coach Ernesto Valverde felt his men “controlled” most of the Europa League match, despite Sassuolo winning 3-0.
The Neroverdi were making their absolute debut in UEFA competition, but looked like old hands with a spectacular victory.
“We controlled most of the first half in a pretty clear fashion,” said Valverde in his Press conference.
“At the start of the second half we continued to control, but without actually creating many dangerous opportunities. It seemed obvious we would score eventually.
“Unfortunately, after the Sassuolo goal we poured forward to find an equaliser and were caught out for the second. After the first hour of the game if you had told someone it would end 3-0 to Sassuolo, they wouldn’t have believed you.
“We maintained possession, but have to turn that into goals and sometimes we don’t manage to do that effectively. Despite the result, Athletic were not so far away from a winning performance as it might look.
“There are another five games in the group and we must look forward.”