Jose Mourinho was satisfied as Manchester United earned a 0-0 draw with Sevilla during the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan on Wednesday night.
The Red Devils only managed to muster six shots on target during the contest, compared to the hosts’ 25, as Mourinho appeared to adopt a defensive approach.
The Portuguese believes the 0-0 scoreline was a fair reflection on how the match unfolded despite Sevilla having 19 more attempts on goal.
“I’m not relieved. I think we finished the game with more space than we had in the beginning,” Mourinho said.
“We were more close to the possibility of scoring a goal, so no, I think the only moment where we felt relieved was in the last couple of minutes of the first half, where by a couple of our mistakes in possession they had a couple of good instances and David (de Gea) made some great saves.
“The game was even, the stats are what they are. Sometimes you have 15 shots but 13 of them were what I call ‘statistic shots’. So I really feel that the result reflects what the game was.”
United will be hoping to secure their place in the quarter-finals of Europe’s premier club competition when the two sides meet in the return leg at Old Trafford on March 13.
First, the Red Devils must first negotiate three tricky-looking Premier League fixtures, starting with this weekend’s home clash with Chelsea.
Mourinho will be hoping to get one over his old club and United are priced at 2.25 to win. A Chelsea victory and the draw are both available at 3.30.
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