Discover Lucien Favre's reaction after Le Gym's qualification for the group stage of the Conference League, which his side secured in the dying moments of the match against Maccabi Tel-Aviv (2-0). 

There were a lot of emotions this evening, and a place in the group stages secured in the end.
I think that it was deserved on balance because we had quite a few chances that almost came off. Then there was this goal that really came at the right time because it had really started to be difficult for us down to ten men. It was an extraordinary goal.

Do you get the feeling that this could be the start of something?
It's the start of the Europa Conference League, that's all. It's magnificent. We saw that everybody was happy, the fans supported us throughout. They saw that we really wanted to win. I say it again: it was deserved based on the first leg and second leg. That's what counts. But then we come away from this as it was tough at the end: you are 10 against 11, there is fatigue, extra time. And then there is this goal that came and it was really incredible.

How did you see the goal?

From the bench, I thought it was hitting the bar. But then all of a sudden, it went in.

Did you know that Alexis Beka Beka was capable of that?

He does the same thing in training. He finds the target with his right and left in training. It wasn't a surprise.

Qualifying for Europe was clearly the objective for the start of this season?
It was an objective, of course. We couldn't not qualify…. We knew that we needed to get through. It was very tough but once again, it was deserved over the course of the two matches.

Is it even more special in this scenario or would you have preferred to avoid it?
Things are the way they are, we can't change them. We played 120 minutes and we leave as the winners. It was entirely deserved.

We get the feeling that with this qualification, a weight has lifted…
No. (After a pause). Of course it was an objective. We did it. That is very important. We will savour this moment this evening but then we need to get straight into the league.

You could say that this will kick start your season.

Of course it helps. It can help us, because the players were maybe a little tense. Well maybe not tense, I wouldn't go that far, but it does everyone some good. We saw it at the end with the explosion of joy, the supporters were behind us, everyone was off the bench. It was magnificent.

This qualification is a nice way to welcome your new recruit Nicolas Pépé ?
Yes. I saw him in the dressing room before the match, while the players were warming up. I think that it's all good. He will be with us tomorrow.

Did the character shown by your team this evening please you?

Yes, for sure because it wasn't easy to hold on. They are a team that have their way of playing, their 3-5-2 with full-backs that are almost wingers. They are very dangerous and very hard to play against.

Lots of players ended up with cramp…

Yes. In any case, we will need to change several players on Sunday, at the very least we have two players suspended. Then we play again at Lille (M5, Wednesday 31 August, 9pm), then Monaco (M6, Sunday 4 September, 8.45pm). We will need to manage that wisely.

Why did you start with Alexis Claude-Maurice?
Because he has done well in training.

He has earned his place?
I can't say that. He was good in training, in his ball recovery, intelligent with his movement. That's why he played, because he is a good player.

Gouiri's sending off?
I can't say anything. I was the most surprised. The two yellow cards that he got… We can't pick up cards like that, but from what I saw from the bench, he was never looking to hurt him. He is looking to battle, but always fairly. I don't understand why they have given him two yellows. But I need to look back at the footage again, because I haven't seen them back. It's harsh.