Did you make hard work of it?
We worked very, very hard. We missed a little bit of freedom and rhythm. We started a little nervous, everything we did was not easy. We fought hard for it to find a solution. My opinion is the solution was there but we don’t make it or didn't find it easily. We missed a bit of rhythm in this game but the players fought hard to get the result and go to the final. This competition is very important for the club. Chelsea have never won this competition. That’s why the players felt the pressure and that's why we missed a little bit of freedom and failed to find the easy solution and score more goals. The players did very well. We didn't concede and had a lot of opportunities to score a second goal.
Did you speak with Tuchel? And what do you think of Palmeiras?
First of all we talked to Thomas at half time and we had a good conversation. He had the same feeling that we were a little nervous and had a lot of easy ball losses. We talked about telling the guys to calm down, play with better rhythm, find easy solutions and not fight so hard for difficult solutions. We had a good conversation. After the game we've not spoken yet. Maybe a bit later we can talk to each other. Palmeiras is a very, very big team with a good European coach. We expect a very hard game in the final with a lot of spectators from Brazil. Like today it will feel like an away game. That makes things more difficult but we're ready to play the final. We're here to win it.
What did you think of Romelu’s performance? And his link up with Havertz?
Everyone's very happy Romelu scored. He fought very hard and tried hard in the last game. He did everything. That's why we give him the chance all the time. We hoped for a bit of luck to score today. He's very happy, we're very happy and hope he continues and scores again in the final. Kai had a good training week so that's why we decided to let him play. To see his quality in the game. He did his job very good, he had some dangerous attacks situations and worked hard to close down spaces. He had a good game.
What have your Brazilian players said about Palmeiras? What’s the plan to beat them?
I think that we are well prepared for this tournament and final. The most important thing is we play a little bit more free in the final with better rhythm. The game today, it was good to play first time in this stadium, to acclimatise. We know they are a very big club in Brazil. They have a lot of good players. In the next days we'll watch the videos, analyse their games. We'll be well prepared.
Happy with Kovacic's performance?
Kova has a big experience. He played a lot of big games in his career. He's important on the pitch and outside it. He brought everything today. He never stopped running, stopped fighting and always tried to find the solution for his team-mates. We're very happy to have Kova in this group. He's a big leader.
Are you favourites against Palmeiras? Pressure on them because other Brazilian clubs mock them for not having this title?
Before we travel we watched a video of them leaving training to come here. We see a lot of pictures and videos of how fans celebrate and support the team. It's amazing. They have amazing supporters for sure. In the final 10,000, 15,000 will be here maybe. I expect a big atmosphere but we are used to that from big Champions League games, big finals. We're prepared for it. I expect a good atmosphere.
What you think of Kepa's performance?
We're very important. In the cup he did a big performance to save the penalty. Today when we needed him he was there and made one big shape. He's in very good shape. He plays and trains well. We're lucky to have him. In the next days we have to decide who plays the final. We're waiting for Thomas' opinion and the goalkeeping coaches before we take the decision for the final.
Al Hilal scheduling complaint - did that benefit you?
We don't make the rules for the tournament. Al Hilal had the same feeling ,a very good team with a lot of offensive quality and players. It felt like an away game. There were a lot of spectators for Al Hilal who pushed the team forward. That's why it was not so easy to play the game today. I'm very happy we can manage it and win this away game.
Any update on Thomas? Can he travel?
We hope Thomas can travel as soon as possible. As I said before he'll follow government rules. He's in self isolation now and doing a covid PCR test every day. Once he tests negative it opens the possibility to travel. Every day we wait for it. We wish he can come to enjoy the final.
