"We have taken the first step"

Atletico Madrid's Rodrigo de Paul spoke about the importance of Wednesday's 2-1 win over Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final because "it's always positive to win against a great team".

"We never thought the tie would be over but it's the first small step. Going there with a positive result is always good. We are a team that knows how to suffer and we also have players with a lot of quality," he told 'Movistar'.

"Signal Iduna Park is an incredible stadium that is very tight, but at least I like those games a lot. I think the team will be up to the task and hopefully we can get Atletico back into another Champions League semi-final.

"We're going to leave everything for it. First Saturday (against Girona) and then we're going to prepare well for the match, knowing that it's going to be very difficult," he continued.

Atletico's start was very powerful with a 2-0 lead. "We had it very clear. We are strong here. The crowd makes us give a plus. These nights are incredible and you never know if they will happen again. We have to hold on to that illusion that we have. It's up to us and I'm very happy," said the Argentinian.

"We've also had our chances, but when you win it's always very positive. In these games you have to give everything. We have an incredible squad with players of great quality. We're a bit tired, now we've got to recover because on Saturday we've got another super important game", he explained.