Joaquín Caparrós was smiling like a Cheshire cat as Armenian journalists clapped the manager into the press conference room.
And then he got down to the brass tacks of the matter.
“Football is only about the result, nothing more. We don’t have to argue about anything else,” said the former Sevilla boss after delivering one of Armenia’s greatest ever wins.
It’s hard to argue with him.
Possession may be nine tenths of the law, but Ireland owning 65% of the ball isn’t worth a jot when you struggle to lay a finger on opposition who were there for the taking.
The Republican Stadium in Yerevan was less than half full at kick-off, with about 6,000 or so turning up.
Revenge was in the air, sure, after their games with Ireland in 2010 and 2011. But confidence in delivering a result was low after a 9-0 thumping by Norway in their last game.
Yet the more that Ireland misfired, the more hope the hosts gained and by the closing stages there were considerably more fans inside the ground.
Word had spread around the neighbouring streets that Ireland were making a dog's dinner of things and that maybe, just maybe, this could be a historic night for the 92nd ranked team.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that Ireland were on easy street just because Caoimhin Kellher had so little to do in goal.
Kenny prides his teams on attacking flair, but there was none of it on show here as the forward division flopped and wilted in the heat.
But as Seamus Coleman flagged before the game, the conditions cannot be used as an excuse and Ireland had enough of the ball to do more damage than they did.
All the effort in the final third was half baked at best. Nothing clean, and nothing even vaguely threatening.
“It’s not a game that we deserved to lose - you couldn’t say that on the balance of play or chances,” said Ireland boss Stephen Kenny.
“But we have lost and we only ourselves to blame and we’re disappointed."
