Hearts winger Rogers Mato described marking Liverpool's Mohamed Salah as a "dream come true" despite his side's 2-0 defeat away to Trabzonspor in the Europa Conference League.
With Hearts hit by injuries, Mato was asked to drop back and fill the left-back role against the Egyptian forward after Harry Milne suffered a potential ACL injury before the game. The makeshift side fought hard and earned praise from their opponents.
Mato's respect for Salah
"He is the best player in Africa, was the top scorer in the Premier League and is a top player. Playing against him is a dream come true. It boosts my confidence as a player and us as a team because they are a good team if truth be told," Mato said.
"It is cool to play against him. It is great to get these experiences against top players. The way he moves, one touch and he moves quickly. Marking him is hard. Now I know what goes on with defenders and full-backs when I try to take them on."
The Ugandan international joked that he did not lose any sleep over the task because manager Wouter Vrancken only told him of the plan on the morning of the match.
Morning reveal and shirt swap
"He told me during the morning walk. He explained the tactics and how I needed to move. It was good he told me in the morning and I didn't lose any sleep. If he had told me the previous night that I would be marking Mo Salah then I wouldn't have slept," Mato confirmed.
Salah and Trabzonspor offered words of praise after the game, and Mato revealed the Liverpool star's shirt went to a teammate. "He just gave us a hug and wished us all the best for the next games," Mato said. "It is good to hear that from such players and big names. It gives us a bit more confidence to believe in yourself and each other as a team. No, I tried to (get Salah's shirt) but I didn't. I think Calvin (Miller) got it."
Back to full-back roots
Mato noted it was more than a decade since he last played as a full-back, and then on the opposite flank. "I last played right-back in the juniors league. I used to play right-back before they moved me up front because of my pace. I was 12 at the time. It was the last time I played there, but they saw I had the speed and had to move me upfront."
With Hearts suffering numerous injuries in the full-back areas, Mato is willing to play anywhere to stay in the starting XI. "Yes, so many injuries. God decided, so we have to cope with it. It will be the gaffer who decides if I am more of a help in the backline or upfront. I will just go with his decision. We have injuries and we will just have to cope with his decision."
Despite taking no points from Turkey, Hearts took confidence after a heavy summer defeat to Celtic. "Absolutely. If you saw the way things went in the Celtic game, they didn't go well on our side. The players tried to come back and build the confidence. I think the confidence has come back for the next game."
Hearts have one win in six games, and Mato is keen to return to winning ways at Motherwell. "We need to bounce back from what we have had in the last two games. It has not been good for us. We need to come back stronger and 100%. These are only small setbacks in football and life. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose and sometimes you draw. We need to step up for ourselves to come back for our brothers who are injured. We need to be there for them."
