Atlético Madrid coach Diego Simeone was dejected following the team’s 1-0 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, which knocked the Colchoneros out of the Champions League at the semifinal stage.
Asked about the controversial refereeing decisions, Simeone said, “there’s nothing to say, we’re out. We congratulate Arsenal, they competed well and they have a team and a coach that I like.
“They follow a consistent approach, with significant financial resources that allow them to compete at this level,
so congratulations,” he continued. “We’ll keep doing our job, without dwelling on a single detail of something that’s so obvious.”
Diego Simeone on who he applauded after the final whistle
“Our fans and our players. We had a very good Champions League campaign, we gave it our all and went much further than anyone normally expected. It’s a shame. We deserved better in the first leg and today, at the very least, to have forced extra time, which might have given us another chance.”
Simeone on nothing going Atlético’s way
“In the first leg, we already had chances to score and didn’t take them. Here, in the second half, we improved, got more into the game, played in their half and had opportunities. All those little details that sometimes go your way. This time, they didn’t go our way.”
Simeone on having the strength to try again
“No, not right now. Definitely not right now.”
Simeone on Arsenal
“Congratulations to Arsenal, they deserve it as they’ve been fighting for years to get to the final. Mikel Arteta did an incredible job so far, so I am happy for them.”
Simeone on refereeing decisions
“If we got knocked out it’s because our opponent deserved to go through…if you ask me how I feel I feel calm. My team gave everything but we weren’t clinical…we were competing with a team that had so much strength and talent.”
Simeone on Riccardo Calafiori’s stamp on Antoine Griezmann in the penalty area
“The Griezmann incident is very obvious. We initially thought (referee Daniel Siebert) had made the right decision. I’m not going to focus on it, I don’t want to, because that would be making excuses and I don’t feel like doing that.”
Simeone on refereeing, again
“It makes no sense to talk about that clear penalty on Griezmann. It doesn’t make sense to talk about it now. Sometimes referees’ decisions can be good for us, sometimes not. Tonight, we were unlucky.”
