Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone says he has a plan for Tuesday’s crucial Champions League quarter-final second leg against Barcelona.
The hosts head into the game 2-0 up in the tie and in good shape to make it through to the semi-finals and a match-up against Arsenal or Sporting.
Simeone made 10 changes to his Atletico team against Sevilla ahead of the game, going on to lose 2-1, and was asked if his team had been distracted by the upcoming Champions League fixture.
“No, no. Atlético didn’t win because
Sevilla were more decisive,” he told reporters.
“We have a plan. That doesn’t mean it will go well, it could go badly, but I have a plan and I’m not going to deviate from it.
“For me, age doesn’t matter. Some players understand the game, others don’t. We did more things right than wrong; the truth is that the opposition really needed the win. We competed very well, we couldn’t create as many goal-scoring opportunities as we’d have liked.
“We had far more possession than I would have preferred, I’d have preferred us to be direct and intense in our transitions, but we couldn’t manage it. We ended up with a narrow result that we could have drawn.”
Atletico and Barcelona have already faced off four times this season. Barca won both La Liga fixtures, while Atletico won 4-3 on aggregate in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey.
