“We had great chances but Napoli’s quality was always present,” said Jürgen Klopp after the game against the Italian side. “We want to keep our dream alive in spite of all the scepticism. We are now in a better position but we still have to win in Marseille.”

How can you play as well as Sven Bender did with a broken nose?

Manni is used to it now, unfortunately. This time, however, the nose doesn’t seem to be crooked. The problem was to stop the bleeding. Given his performance, it was important that he was able to play on. He played a great game and had to change his shirt a few times. We got the last one from our fan shop.

And what do you make of Henrikh Mkhytarian’s performance?

He has to learn an incredible amount of new things – apart from a different mentality a different and more dominant style of play. But Miki is a faster learner than other signings of recent years. It’s a process of development. Tonight, just like in the Derby, he stepped on the gas. He’s a difference maker. And tonight he made the difference. We now have to make sure to see him play like that in as many games as possible.

How important was this win for the remainder of the season?

We are totally relaxed in this respect and focus exclusively on ourselves. There was no pressure from anyone in the club. This shows the quality of the people in charge. We want to keep our Champions League dream alive in spite of all the scepticism. We are now in a better position but we still have to win in Marseille.

Were you worried that it could go wrong because of the many chances missed?

It was a tight game, and everyone involved, on and off the pitch, was highly focused. I was happy when Roman kept our 1-0 lead alive with a save from Higuain and that we scored the second in the following attack. This was, just like the other two goals, one of the game’s key moments. The game was on a knife edge. We had great chances but Napoli’s quality was always present. After falling behind, they had to change their game plan. And that helped us.

How do you rate BVB‘s chances of progressing?

Our chances are better than before the game, but nothing has been decided yet. Anyone who thinks differently makes the first mistake. We now have a chance again to remain in the Champions League. It’s good that Arsenal are not through yet, either. We need to play a good game in Marseille.