Simeone: “The only thing that counts will be the match against Celta”

Diego Pablo Simeone spoke to the press after Atlético's 2-4 victory in Cádiz, which places the advantage with Real Madrid, second classified, by ten points despite having played one game less.

They add 50 points in the middle of the season, is it a blow to LaLiga?

All games are an important step to reach the objectives. It was a difficult, tough game, when we started to see the controlled game we knew we were going to suffer. They are stable, maintain a dynamic game and with the second goal they got fully into the game and complicated us with centers from the side. We were able to resolve with the good play of Correa and the completion of Koke in a very disputed match.

Are you calmer with this advantage?

In football, what we have to be constantly living with events, we care to continue in the line we are and seek to improve. We didn't have Carrasco and Hermoso, who were very good for the team, and they all responded very well. We need a competition that increases, the Torreira and Herrera grow, Kondogbia makes a hole, give Dembélé entry, find Vitolo and we will be better in training, that will improve the team's competition.

Atlético is the team with the fewest goals and the highest goalscorer, what makes you most proud?

Defending well gives you the chance to be in a game and enhance the talent that the team has. There is not one situation without the other so that things are very good. If there is only one of the two they are not enough, the ideal situation is to find both situations and be forceful offensively.

Although there are people who say they are leaders because their rivals are in bad shape, with the data they are one of the best first laps in LaLiga.

I am very respectful of everyone's opinions, in football it is normal for it to be debated. We move away from those situations, the only thing that counts is going to be the game against Celta.

Does he look like a champion?

To follow the line you are commenting on, we must follow match by match, compete better in training sessions, that require me to play to have more competition, at the end of February the Champions League arrives where we hope to be able to compete until the end and we will need everyone. I need you in the best way for whatever comes next.

He used Llorente and Saúl as lanes.

For me Saúl in the first half was one of the best in the game. He had already played in that position and knows it on the field. He scored the goal, saw Lemar well in that sector where Carrasco came from at a high level. It cost Marcos a little more, he feels more comfortable internally and we wanted to give him more freedom to ask to break up and that is why we carried the game as they saw it on the field.

Suárez also adds a foul.

The other day he, Lemar and João were training fouls and we commented that we had not scored a foul for some time. Luis told us that he had scored goals in that condition, I told him that I hadn't seen him score free-kick so many times, that's why we smiled when he scored that goal.