Atlético Madrid coach Diego Simeone refused to be drawn into criticising his team after a nine-game unbeaten run ended with a 2-0 loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Tuesday night at the Metropolitano.
“Football is based on many good individual moments, but also on the mistakes that are made: whether you defend poorly, lose possession, or fail to mark at a corner… That’s why there are so many goals,” he explained. “Those who can capitalise on them best are the ones who benefit the most.”
Diego Simeone on what went wrong
“We needed to keep playing the way we were until the 0-1. Up until then, we were competing well against a top-class, strong side. We know each other; we know their strengths, but also our own and our weaknesses. We always try to improve. Today, up until the 55th or 60th minute, we competed very well.”
Simeone on the opening goal
“We know their physical attributes; they’ve always been like that. Goals are always down to mistakes, or at least most of them are; there’s always a mistake. This time it was our turn; it can happen, that’s the game, that’s football. We need to bounce back for Sunday and be strong for what lies ahead.”
Simeone on Le Normand looking angry when substituted
“Robin is a very decent, very honourable, hard-working person. It’s normal for him to be angry, just like any footballer when he makes a mistake.”
Simeone on what he learned from the game
“We managed it quite well. Sørloth gave us the option of not having to play with deep-lying players and of not always having to build up play in an organised manner. We were able to rely more on direct play, as we did. Being in the opposition’s half and making the most of our physicality paid off handsomely whilst it lasted. We had the match under control; we played it exactly as we wanted to. Unfortunately, the 0-1 went in; we couldn’t react, and we could have done better before the 0-2, which effectively ended the match.”
Simeone on whether De Miguel’s death affected the game
“These questions are tough. The only thing that matters is that the family can stay united, along with friends and those closest to him. My condolences to the whole family. Anything else just leads to mistakes, nothing more.”
Simeone on whether these matches bring him back down to earth
“When we face top-tier opponents, it can happen, against Bayern, against Arsenal… They’re better teams than us and we have to keep working to compete with them, especially in those knockout ties that come up at the end of the season, which aren’t like these. In a two-legged tie, anything can happen, but we have to go all the way to 120 because 100 isn’t enough.”
