Atlético de Madrid will wrap up the 2025 calendar year with a visit to take on Girona in LaLiga on Sunday, and coach Diego Simeone spoke to the media ahead of the game.
Simeone insisted that despite the fixture congestion “it all comes down to competing, playing, not having time to recover, we manage it as we go along.
“It’s difficult because we always need to win, and that puts maximum pressure on everyone: the coaching staff, the fitness coaches, the physios, the players,” Simeone continued. “It’s a high
tempo of consecutive matches, but there’s nothing we can do about it, we just have to be prepared with a large squad, manage our efforts and compete.”
El Cholo wrapped up in his usual blunt style by insisting “the fans don’t need healthy players, they need the team to win.”
Diego Simeone on Thiago Almada’s current form
“He’s competing very well, working on what we need. Other teammates are also doing very well and the coach decides on one or the other. He has a vision of the game in the final third. In the Barcelona match, he could have scored a goal, he gave an assist to Griezmann that didn’t end in a goal, the pass to Gallagher in the 0-1 in the Balearic Islands… These are interesting moments. We like him, he’s useful to us and we hope he continues to develop in the way we want and in the way he wants.”
Diego Simeone on Girona
“I always look at opponents based on their current form, and Girona are better than they were at the start of the season. They’re coming off the back of some positive results, three or four matches in which they’ve competed very well, such as against Real Madrid or coming back against Real Sociedad. They’re continuing in the same vein, with the courageous style of play that generates the attacking football the manager wants. We’ll try to take the game to where we think we can hurt them.”
Diego Simeone on many away games in December
“I don’t have an opinion. There’s no point in arguing about it; we have to accept the fixture list and try to do our best.”
Diego Simeone on Atlético’s away form this season
“The year is very long, it has good spells, average spells and other not-so-good spells, and that’s where we have to be strong. We have to be strong at home and away, and we’re growing in that respect.”
Diego Simeone on Villarreal benefitting from not playing in Miami
“I don’t comment on what might happen on other pitches. We’re focused on our own business, on what interests us. The season is very long and we’re focused on Girona.”
Diego Simeone on Marcos Llorente’s fitness
“He looked pretty good. We’ll decide tomorrow if he starts. I think he’s fine.”
