"We played a lot better than in the other away games"

Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane offered his thoughts on his side's 2-0 Champions League win at Roma in the first leg of the last 16 on Wednesday night.

Cristiano Ronaldo: "We talked and I am happy with his goal because everyone always expects him to score and that's exactly what he did. I am happy for him and for the team. I have to congratulate everyone on the effort they put in. The first half was difficult and we improved a lot in the second half."

Did the players need a good performance away from home? "We are always going to have difficult away games and today was one of them. We played a lot better than in the other away games. It'd be fair to say that it was a game where it was important to keep a clean sheet, and to score too - and we managed to do both of those things."

Assessment of the tie: "It isn't over; we have to see it out in the second leg. We're happy with the result; winning 2-0 away to Roma isn't easy. Now we have to focus on our next league match [against Málaga on Sunday]. But the tie isn't over, that's for sure."

On congratulating his players one by one: “For me, the most important thing is the group. There'll always be one man who makes the difference, and today that was Cristiano Ronaldo. But when I see the players who didn't play really urging the team on from the dugout, for me that's vital. When we win, we win together and that's really important."

Barça seven points ahead of Real in La Liga: “It'll be difficult, but we're going to give it everything. Today we're happy. We're going to rest well and focus on the Málaga game."