Leonardo Jardim insists Monaco will not give up their attacking “DNA” when they welcome Borussia Dortmund for the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday, despite their advantage in the tie.
Monaco lead 3-2 after the first leg in Dortmund and the away goals put the Ligue 1 leaders in a strong position ahead of the return clash at Stade Louis II.
That five-goal thriller swung from end-to-end and Jardim says he will not be sacrificing Monaco’s attacking potential for a more defensive shape, even though a semi-final spot is within their grasp.
“Our team is used to playing with a DNA which will not change,” Jardim told reporters on Tuesday. “We want to maintain that momentum.
“Tomorrow it will be a qualifying match and we are only halfway through the quarter-final. Maybe we’ll need to score tomorrow to go through.”
Cuando tienes fe todo es posible. Vamos Monaco/ keep calm…. Everything is possible when you have faith. pic.twitter.com/oIb3O9y5j6
— Radamel Falcao (@FALCAO) April 16, 2017
The first leg was postponed after an attack on Dortmund’s team coach but Jardim believes the Bundesliga team will have regained their focus for their trip to Monaco.
“We are expecting Dortmund to be much stronger, they have digested what happened,” the coach added. “I think Dortmund are stronger psychologically. A very strong team, which has already surpassed this problem.
“I saw the match on Saturday [a 3-1 win against Eintracht Frankfurt], they played well. They have [Gonzalo] Castro and [Marco] Reus back and they’re two very important players for them.”
Le groupe de 19 joueurs convoqués par @leonardojjardim ! #ASMBVBhttps://t.co/gB7Vgv2xaR
— AS MONACO (@AS_Monaco) April 18, 2017
Monaco, who will be without suspended midfielder Fabinho, are balancing European commitments against a finely poised Ligue 1 title race with Paris Saint-Germain and Nice, but Jardim believes his side have enough energy in the tank.
“We’re the team that’s played the most games in all of Europe,” Jardim said. “I think the players are ready and are working well.
“We’ll try to be flat out in the Champions League and the league, but it’s normal that we’re more tired than teams who play less.
“Our heads have to be focused on tomorrow’s game, we’re 90 minutes into the Champions League semi-finals but that’s true for our opponents as well.”
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