Amsterdam, Nov 27 (IANS): Frank de Boer said he was proud of the way Ajax beat FC Barcelona 2-1 in the UEFA Champions League, by putting the Spanish giants under pressure.

Ajax took a 2-0 lead in the first half with a convincing attacking performance Tuesday. Due to a red card for defender Joel Veltman and a penalty for FC Barcelona the visitors dominated the second half, but Ajax held on to the 2-1 lead for a momentous win, reports Xinhua.

"We have beaten them with our philosophy," said De Boer at the press conference in the Amsterdam Arena.

"We put a lot of pressure on them and it was fantastic. We constantly put pressure on their creative midfielders."

"It was a great first half and we were deservedly in front 2-0," De Boer added.

"I did not hesitate for a second about our tactics. I think we put even more pressure on them than Bayern did against them last year in the Champions League. It worked."

Gerardo Martino suffered his first defeat as coach of FC Barcelona.

"The first half was terrible, we lacked the right attitude," said Martino at the press conference.

"We lost the game in the first half. Ajax fought for a place in the next round and could play freely. Tactically a lot went wrong with us, we were only running after the ball. Ajax played very well."