Rangnick hails players

Schalke coach Ralf Rangnick praised his players after the German side knocked holders Inter out of the Champions League.



The German side secured their place in the final four for the first time in their history with a 2-1 win on Wednesday night to go through 7-3 on aggregate.



Schalke will now face Manchester United in the semi-finals and Ragnick was delighted with his side's two performances against Inter.



"We've produced two great performances," said Rangnick.



"If you only allow the Champions League winners a couple of chances, you know you have played well.



"Each player worked hard for each other and that was the key to our success."



"A semi-final in the Champions League is something extraordinary for all of us and against Manchester United we will start in a similar position to how we began against Inter: as clear outsiders.



"But again, anything can happen and if it all goes to plan we can reach the final. First we have to produce some good results in the Bundesliga to give us a boost: with every positive result our Champions League chances improve."



Meanwhile, Schalke's veteran striker Raul, who opened the scoring on Wednesday, admits he is allowing himself to dream of a return to the final.



"It's incredible - a great moment. It's great to be part of this team," he said. "With so many new players having arrived, to find ourselves rubbing shoulders with the best three teams in Europe is hugely satisfying.



"We will try to enjoy this situation but we know we will have to work hard over the next two weeks to prepare for the semi-finals.



"We have won twice against the reigning European club champions; we were the better side in both games and now we must face a really complicated semi-final against Manchester United. We have to get it out of our heads that we are playing a big team like United and believe that we can reach the final, even though we won't be favourites."




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Inter 2-5 Schalke: Tie not over - Rangnick

Schalke coach Ralf Rangnick revelled in his side's stunning 5-2 victory in the San Siro over holders Inter last night, but admitted "we're not in the semi-finals just yet".



Inter went ahead in the very first minute, getting off to the dream start through Dejan Stankovic. The German side hit back though, shocking the San Siro with two goals through Joel Matip and Edu, either side of a Diego Milito strike, meaning the sides went into half time level at 2-2.



Seven minutes after the break, Champions League record goalscorer Raul put Schalke ahead, before Inter defender Andrea Ranocchia turned a cross into his own net. Christian Chivu was sent off on 62 minutes, and with fifteen minutes remaining Edu added a fifth for the visitors.



"We are not in the semi-finals just yet, but we have a pretty big chance now", said Rangnick post-match.



"We know we have to digest this first before we can fully appreciate it. Even at 3-2 and more so at 4-2 and after the second yellow for Chivu, I was certain we would not lose any more. In the end, we could have scored even more. It is surely the best game of my career."



"We saw Saturday's game here and how much space Milan were given so we decided to start with José Manuel Jurado, to play football. If you try to just defend against a team like Inter, you are asking for trouble. Still, the first half was incredible: it could have been 5-5 at half-time.



"With [Klaas-Jan] Huntelaar sidelined it was clear we needed a solution for the position of central forward and Edu needs to play there; he is not a winger. He got a real chance tonight and took it. Today, we can celebrate a bit, but then we have to focus on Saturday."



And Inter boss Leonardo admitted that it was hard to envisage a Nerazzurri recovery, though they would try.



"It has been a very difficult week in every sense: first the derby knockout, now this heavy defeat against Schalke," said the Brazilian. "Tonight's game started in the best possible fashion and it would have been difficult to predict what was to come. Early in the second half we missed a couple of chances and immediately Schalke scored their third.



"They had six or seven shots and scored five goals, so in that we can feel hard done by. After their third and fourth goals responding became difficult, especially with ten men, and in the end we lacked balance, as we did on Saturday against Milan. We played a different game tonight, changing several things, but still that was missing.



"It's difficult to think about mounting a recovery in the second leg, but we'll try to capture the best possible result. Unfortunately, the crucial period of the season has come at the wrong time for us. It took a lot of effort to climb the league standings and Inter always play to win: it's the only way we know."



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