Slovakia 'surprised' at beating Italy
Slovakia 'surprised' at beating Italy
Posted: 2010-06-25 07:57
Slovakia striker Robert Vittek has admitted that they did not expect to overrun Italy they way they did in their 3-2 victory at Ellis Park that sent the defending champions crashing out of the World Cup on Thursday.
Vittek snatched a brace as Slovakia made a shock passage to the Last 16 in a tie that the Italians were expected to win and at least progress to the next round.
"Off course, we didn't expect to dominate the way we did. We didn't really think that we would have the game under control the way we did, but we played our hearts out and that is why we have managed to progress to the next round. The outcome of this game was decided by our hearts," says Vittek.
The 28 year-old that not many people back home in Slovakia believed they would progress from this group.
"It is a huge success to have achieved what we did today. This is something that we only dreamt of. This victory will surely lift the Slovak game to new heights. We have proven that we can be a better team and overcome any challenge on any day.
"This victory is important more than the Man of the Match award that I have been given. If I had a choice, then I would cut this trophy into pieces and shared it with my team mates. I am happy that I was at the right place at the right time to have scored those two goals that helped the team progress and not me alone. I maybe the best striker in Slovakia right now, but that is not important because what matters is that the team does well," he says.
Vittek, who plays for Turkish club Ankaragucu, says they have nothing to lose as underdogs in the next and will just continue doing what they did against Italy.
"We have nothing to lose and have already surprised some and we hope that we will continue to play the way we did today," he adds.
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