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"He has been a little bit more of a modern captain, taking care of every single detail. He knew what we had was good and working but improved it without changing it."
McIlroy added: "I can't say enough about the captain. Paul McGinley has been absolutely immense this week. He has left no stone unturned. He has given this week a lot of thought over the last two years. I am just glad it worked out for him."
Captain Paul McGinley described each of his players as "a colossus" after holders Europe won the Ryder Cup for the eighth time in the last 10 outings.
Welsh rookie Jamie Donaldson secured the trophy for the home team on the 15th green by beating former U.S. PGA champion Keegan Bradley 4&3.
"Proud is the first word," McGinley told Sky Sports as he embraced the smiling Donaldson.
"I want to say it's been a real honour to get these 12 players, they have all been a colossus, all of them, the caddies, the backroom team, five vice-captains, it's been a huge team effort.
"Playing is something very, very special and I said to the guys last night, as much as I've enjoyed captain, it's different than playing. Enjoy it, be out there and enjoy it, because the days happen so quick and they go. It's been a real great honour."
McGinley's American counterpart Tom Watson said the key to the outcome was Europe's two 3 1/2-point hauls from the foursomes sessions.
"The real difference was the foursomes," said the U.S. skipper. "The combined scores for our team in foursomes were really, really high compared to theirs.
"We made them think about us early on in the singles and then they turned it on but the foursomes play is what separated the two teams."
Asked what he would tell his team, Watson replied: "You played your best but it wasn't good enough. You've got to find out what it takes to play a little bit better".
