Paolo Vanoli analyzed his team's performance after they lost 3-0 to Crystal Palace in the Conference League quarter-final first leg.

It was a poor first-half performance and you come away with a heavy defeat. Would you say it's a fair scoreline?

“We started the game really well then the penalty changed everything. I haven't rewatched it but a player should never go sliding in inside the area. We came apart a bit after that and lost our focus, and that's how we conceded the second goal.

“We did better in the second half and could have gotten back into the game with that chance we had. What I didn't like was the end. You simply can't afford to throw away qualification like that in an international match. We conceded a third and it might have been four. That's something we must improve. 

“That said, for parts of the game we played well – better than in Verona. We played with confidence but we were up against a team that was physically and technically superior. We must learn from this for the return leg and for the future.”

Do you think some of the players' minds might have been on the relegation battle? Some of them seemed to go missing today.

“You'd be stupid to think that 14^th in Serie A is the same as 14^th in the Premier League and I think we saw the difference – both on a physical and technical level. If you want to raise the bar, these are the games you need to be playing. 

“It's a shame about the scoreline because we had the chances to keep the tie open. When you get to 2-0 you have to understand how important it is to take it to the return leg. That's more frustrating than the penalty mistake in the first half. You have to be smart and see out those last five minutes.

“I think my players gave their all. I'd have liked to go into this match with everyone available because the substitutes can make the difference. We still have the return leg to play and we still need to make sure we stay up. I'm sorry for the fans. I'm sorry about the result but it wasn't a case of not giving our all.”

Will you go into the second leg with no pressure now?

“Anything is possible in football but we know we'll be up against a great team. We'll do everything we can in front of our fans. Other teams have managed to turn a similar scoreline around and we'll have a go ourselves. 

“Of course, our main focus now is the Lazio match because we need more points to beat the drop.”

Did you expect more from the subs, youngsters aside? Why was Marin Pongracic taken off 20 minutes from the end?

“Pongracic asked to come off because he felt a hamstring niggle and he's a player I can't afford to lose. 

“The subs weren't the problem. I was more annoyed about our mentality at the end of the game because we had a decent second half and could have scored but you can't throw it away like that.”