"Nothing to complain about my players: let's go for a fourth place finish, which will be difficult"

Atletico Madrid lost emphatically against Barcelona in the 29th round of La Liga. Both Diego Simeone and his captain, Koke Resurreccien, attribute part of the defeat to the effort put in just a few days ago in the Champions League tie against Inter Milan. The coach, like his the Spanish midfielder, appeared before the 'DAZN' microphones and in the press room to give his impressions and explanations.

"They were superior, they were clinical in the first chances to score. We had the first one with Barrios, then Morata's for 1-1.... It was important. Not much had happened in defence. The second goal took us straight out of the game. We'd come from a great effort. Nothing to complain about my players. They gave it their all, that's all there was to it. Let's keep calm and push for fourth place. It will be complicated and difficult," he said.

"The teams are improving and we have to keep improving too. It's not the time to look for excuses, I don't like that. The reality is what it is. We gave everything against Inter... We tried to look for fresh legs, but the second goal took away the energy we had to keep pushing. They were clinical. Congratulations to them because they played a good game," he said.

"We have to keep improving a lot. That is the way forward. We are going to work accordingly. Prepare for the Villarreal game and the championship will dictate what can happen. In La Liga, we have to take another step forward. It's costing us. We have a very tough game in Villarreal. We'll have a couple of days to train when the boys come back from the national team. The other teams are improving and we have to improve," he added.

 

March 17, 2024