Diego Simeonecoach Atlético de Madrid, attended the media in the preview of the match against Real Sociedad in the Wanda Metropolitano, the last in LaLiga, and in which the rojiblanco team needs a point to secure third place.
What are you most proud of in this League
“We are finishing a very difficult League, we go through different stages, I think that rebelling in the difficult situations we went through in December or January generated us to become strong to follow the usual line. And get hooked at the turn of the competition. A tremendous effort. The team is strong, well and hopefully we can finish the League in the best way. ”
Happy if there are not many changes in the template?
“We speak with Miguel, Andrea, as a consequence of what we need and expectations for the coming season. We are clear about what we are looking for. We will not comment. The team is growing, people who came and who this season will serve as the base for the next. At this stage there may not be brilliant purchases and sales, who can keep competing from one year to the next will continue to be in the fight of all the competitions ”.
This year he does not appear on the list of best coaches in LaLiga …
“I do not train so that people value me, I train so that my team and my club win, the one that hires me, is in the objectives that it needs year after year. Then the opinions are respectable and for tastes, colors. You have to have peace of mind to know the way and what is the reality of this game ”.
Quique Setién, demand of Barça … At Atlético Simeone is never questioned In Madrid and Barça it does happen.
“Each club has its priority objectives and the demands for everyone vary. We demand to get closer to having the requirement to fight the championships. From the last ten years Barcelona Madrid and once we have won. We have been twice seconds. The two prepare to be champion in everything. Now Barcelona will aim to win the Champions League, Madrid will try to beat City… They are champion teams and they have objectives of being champion, or that is not the case, it is complex to sustain for the leaders, surely ”.
Philip
“The formula is difficult to have when you need to play many games and there is none. You have had difficulties in quarantine to be able to train in the best way, you did not have the tools and it cost you, then you had an injury … The other day you did better match, we will see if it starts tomorrow from the beginning to have continuity, and next week rest and then prepare, not lower the competition because it is tremendous in that place. We need it very well for what is to come. ”
The best physical moment of the season, are you worried that I will lose it?
“This is like when teams win or lose, coaches are good or bad … It's everything, the management of the players, the changes, the workloads in the games … Everything that involves injury, when winning or losing. The team prepared well in the quarantine, we were able to rotate in almost all the games, six-seven each game in the first ones. Then we were shortening the changes because it improved the shape. We got it right, but because the footballers got ready, they followed us, they responded by playing 60 or 30 minutes ”.
What grade do you give this transition season
“What I have been commenting on, we went through different stages. For us it was normal, we were going to suffer at some point in the season. We started with great enthusiasm, in preseason, with great performance, we started winning the first days, from Valencia the team had more difficulties in finding force, after Villarreal the team returned to its line, with players who had better moments, and in the quarantine, Carrasco, goals from Morata, improvement of Costa, the moments of Vitolo and Llorente, gave us weapons to have regularity. In this crazy month, we kept it in the performance of many footballers. And it brings us closer to the results that one seeks. ”
The team pushes higher for many games in a row
“Okay, we were working a lot on the 'didactic' part, on video, with the players, talking to them about what we couldn't train but we were going to insist on that. And it started to appear. There was more aggressiveness in the response of Llorente, Carrasco, Morata, Correa, Costa … That gave us more possibilities, Saúl has us accustomed … We had a better location in the field. There are many games that we play with two media, because Correa, Carrasco or Llorente allow us to play like this. ”