Forest will now host Porto in the quarterfinal second-leg knowing what is needed to reach the semifinals.
Yates said afterwards: "We'll take it. Back to the City Ground, everything to play for. It's going to be a good game.
"I felt it was a really tactical game, they had spells on the ball, we had to be disciplined, defensively organised. It was a fair result in the end. I think we could have played better, there are things to improve upon. They have won every game here all season in the Europa League, so it cant be too bad."
On how this can help Forest in their remaining games, the midfielder also said: "We have a massive game on Sunday in the Premier League. Full focus on that, but there's something special about European games at the City Ground.
"It's magical, the support is incredible. This journey we are on in Europe is special and as you can see they are enjoying it and so are we."