MADRID, 28 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The coach of Atlético de Madrid, Diego Pablo Simeone, has assured that the CEO of Atlético de Madrid, Miguel Ángel Gil Marín, conveyed “what many are silent about” in a statement published after the team’s elimination in the Copa del Rey to hands of Real Madrid, and has warned of the danger of this Sunday’s match against Osasuna, an “enthusiastic” rival and full of “positive energy” after reaching the cup semifinals.
“First of all, we have to start with a situation; since I’ve been here, I’ve never read statements like the ones Miguel Ángel has made. Since I’ve been here, we’ve never looked for excuses, we’ve always sought to help, and more so with the growth of VAR, that make the game much fairer. Obviously, faced with an extremely clear situation, he expressed what many are silent about; he said it completely naturally, which is the healthiest thing to do,” he declared at a press conference.
On Friday, after the elimination of the rojiblancos in the quarterfinals of the Cup against the white team (3-1), Gil Marín spoke out against the “system” with a reflection on the “pressure” exerted by the Madrid team on the referees at the time of sanctioning.
The Argentine coach assured that things “will not change” and that they must “accept” that they happen like this. “It’s not changing, because it’s not going to change. The subconscious plays, and when the subconscious plays everything becomes very difficult. We have to accept what we have and compete in the best way we can to continue improving,” he said.
“There are things that are very clear, and it seems that excuses are being sought, and we have never used them, let alone playing a game like the one we did. Circumstances happened, a play on the way out of play was not understood in the same way band and another way to the goal. It’s over, nobody cares; we are out and they are in. It’s good that the voice of the club has transmitted what we all saw and see”, he continued.
Regarding his players, who will compete again three days later, he acknowledged that they are “surely tired, with significant stress”, but that they will seek to “respond well”. “It’s our job and it’s what we usually do as a way of life. At work, when you give everything and work for a game like the one the other day and it’s played the way we were able to play, the way we work and look for it, you stay in peace because you did what you had to do,” he said.
“That is my way of understanding life and I take it to my work. I am at peace, with the tranquility of having played a great game. Due to certain circumstances, he could not be on our side. I congratulate the rival. Now, there is no other way than from game to game, more than ever,” he continued.
In addition, he recalled that there is “a long second round” and that they now face “an enthusiastic rival.” “He has a great job from a very regular coach since he arrived in Osasuna, always competitive in complex matches. They have that positive energy of being in the Cup semifinals. He will surely rotate, as he does in all games, because he has committed boys with the idea they have. We are going to try to take the game to where we can hurt them and we are going to continue behaving as we have been doing,” he said.
Finally, Simeone ruled out revealing if he will continue at the helm of Atlético for another year. “My contract depends a lot on how we finish the season. Every season finale we get together to see how we continue, and this year will be no exception,” he said. “It’s related to a lot of things: there’s a contract, we always get together at the end of the season to see if the objectives are met… They’ll find out what will happen when the season ends,” he concluded.