Di Francesco hails 'extraordinary' victory over Shakhtar
Roma coach Eusebio Di Francesco believes his team played almost ''the game of their lives'' against Shakhtar Donetsk on Tuesday evening.
Shakhtar were defending their lead from the first leg, where they had triumphed 2-1, but Roma's Edin Dzeko scored an early second-goal to crush their European dreams.
Speaking after the victoy, which marks the first time that Roma have reached the quarter-final stages of the Champions League since 2008, Di Francesco said: "This is an extraordinary result because it's not easy to play at these levels. This was a team made up of men who I won't say played the game of their lives, but almost.''
He added: ''Roma have had the satisfaction this year, despite some difficult times, of getting into the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League and we need to be proud of this. And as for our fans - I had goosebumps. [Now] I don't care who we play [in the quarter-finals]. We need to let this sink in.''
Di Francesco is quietly confident that Roma's strong form thus far will lead them to victory, arguing: ''We've won five of our last six in the league and we're into the last eight in Europe, so I am seeing growth in this team. I am totally convinced that this team is going places.''
The only team the Italian would not like to face, though, is Sevilla as he targets a showdown with former team-mate and colleague Vincenzo Montella in the final on May 26.