A 1-0 victory over Osasuna made it five home wins in a row for Atlético Madrid, but coach Diego Simeone gave the credit to one man in particular in his post-match press conference on Saturday night.
Speaking in praise of his goalkeeper Jan Oblak, who made a superb save late on, the coach said “he’s a great goalkeeper, he’s been with us for years and we’re not surprised because (saves like that) have happened in many situations.
“We’re very happy that we didn’t concede a goal, as the team started very well
until Baena’s goal, then it was more sluggish and slow, we had two chances from Griezmann, one from Julián, then we went looking for the goal, we took risks by leaving spaces and a good move from Giuliano and Almada’s arrival led to the goal.”
Simeone went on to explain “we won a match that wasn’t so easy because of the combination of everything that had happened.”
Diego Simeone on missed chances
“Other times we have been more decisive, today we were decisive in front of goal, whereas they had one shot that could have been a goal. Oblak saved it and with that decisiveness we took the three points.”
Diego Simeone on the clean sheet
“I think the team knew how to suffer in the final stages. (Osasuna) had a lot of tall players, but we controlled the area well, except for the crosses, because we allowed them too many and that forced us to overexert ourselves inside the area. That’s something we need to improve. It was a strange atmosphere for the match, but luckily for the players, we were able to pull through.”
Diego Simeone on Álex Baena’s disallowed goal
“What do you think? There are some things one just doesn’t understand.”
Diego Simeone on VAR’s intervention for Baena’s goal
“I think the same as you, you’re answering me. There are three people who see it and decide the opposite of what we all think.”
Diego Simeone on his team coming under pressure
“I don’t think it has any significant value. If it’s possession for the sake of not attacking, it doesn’t make sense. There are teams that are active and can find combination play and danger, and those are the real danger. Winning possession if you don’t shoot on goal doesn’t make sense. I try to look at teams that have verticality, speed, the goal we scored speaks to what we’re looking for. When it’s just to praise possession numbers, it doesn’t make sense.”
Diego Simeone on protests against the match in Miami
“It’s difficult to interpret. I think Villarreal normally plays at La Cerámica, and Barcelona is going to play in Miami as the away team. They lose their home advantage, their fans won’t be at the stadium. It’s a 20-hour trip, it’s a stadium they’ve never played in before, you have to respect that.”
Diego Simeone on Josema Giménez
“When Josema is fit, he’s the best centre-back we have. He’s very strong in the air, hard to beat, and today he played the full 90 minutes, taking a risk on the last play. We’re happy with him and we have to help him to continue helping us.”
