Atlético Madrid fell to a disastrous 3-0 defeat against Rayo Vallecano at the unusual setting of Leganés’ Butarque stadium on Sunday. After the match, coach Diego Simeone had to respond to comments from goalkeeper Jan Oblak after the final whistle.
“There’s no explanation, you can’t choose which games to play, you have to play them all to win,” the goalkeeper said in his post-match interview on the field. “We went out there to play to win, but our minds aren’t in the right place to win games in a row,
there’s no other explanation.”
Simply put, the coach saw things differently.
“I don’t agree with what Oblak said,” Simeone said. “The team doesn’t pick and choose games, they competed poorly and when the opponent plays better, they’re superior and they beat you.”
Diego Simeone on whether the team lacked energy
“No, we lacked better choices on the field.”
Simeone on whether the team lacked motivation
“I don’t think that’s it.”
Simeone on the lack of intensity
“I don’t think it was intensity. People often talk about intensity, desire to win, attitude… But we played badly. The team played badly, and when you play badly and your opponent plays better, obviously the team that plays better has a better chance of winning. They took time away from us, we couldn’t progress in the first phase of attack, we didn’t have transitions, good passes, good crosses, and they were decisive. It’s not about intensity, attitude, or energy; it’s because they were better.”
Simeone on the players who came in
“They’ll have another chance, because this is everyone’s responsibility. To get where we want to be, compete in the Champions League, advance in the Cup and fight until the end in La Liga, we need everyone. This isn’t about 10 players, it’s about all 20 or 22 of us. So the coaching staff and the team have to be prepared to compete and interpret the games in the best possible way.”
Simeone on the two versions of this team
“There’s no need to explain. The opponent was simply better. We tried to create several plays on the right side where we were able to make good progress, but we couldn’t find a way to score, and they were decisive, pressed well, didn’t give us time to think, and played a good game, while we couldn’t play the game we wanted to play.“
Simeone on the positives
“We continue to see the players who have arrived. Rodrigo had much more time, Vargas came on to play and grow. Nico played a complete game, Molina was very good, and they were better at pressing in our back line and were decisive.”
Simeone on the objective in La Liga
“Our objective is to play every game as if it were our last. Today we couldn’t do that as we usually do, we have to congratulate our opponents and focus on the Champions League.”
