“Thanks to Simeone we are where we are right now”

“It is a pride to be president of Atlético de Madrid, to have won so many titles and to be able to continue belonging” to the rojiblanco club, expressed Enrique Cerezo In a video broadcast this Thursday by the entity on the occasion of his thousand games at the head of the institution, in which he recalled his team’s triumphs, he highlighted figures such as Luis Aragonese or Fernando Torres and valued that his group has reached the current levels thanks to Diego Simeon.

“We were lucky to find a great coach, who is Simeone, and thanks to him, his work, his effort and his sporting sacrifice we are where we are right now. It is an enviable situation not only in Spain, but in Europe. That is why he is loved, people admire him and everyone is delighted that he is always here and continues for many years,” said the Atlético de Madrid manager, who became president in 2003.

“Then there has also been a very important part, the economic one, that we have had a person who has worked 24 hours a day, who is Miguel Angel Gil Marinwhich has ensured that the club is in a magnificent and stable situation as it is now”, added Cerezo, whose journey in the video begins with the final of the Europa League won in 2010 against Fulham in Hamburg, with the decisive goal of Diego Forlan in the shock extension.

“That is a very important game and memory, because of the game, because of the goals and because the then Prince of Spain, today the King of Spain, Felipe VI, was present. And I remember a photo we took with the King at the end of the game in the locker room. I have it framed with great affection.” explained Cerezo, who recalled the figure of Quique Sanchez Floresthe coach of that title: “When he came we were in a fatal sporting situation and it was a success that he was there. It was the beginning of this magnificent decade of victories”.

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Although he cites later, already with Diego Simeone at the helm of the team, the decisive jump to higher levels: “The title that is really definitive to have a magnificent sporting situation like we have had these years was the Copa del Rey that we won in the Bernabéu to Real Madrid (1-2, in 2013). From that moment is when Atlético de Madrid begins to be aware that they have to win many titles, as it has been in recent years”.

Then came the 2014 League. “It wasn’t easy either. We went to the game (the last one against Barcelona at the Camp Nou, in which a draw was enough for Atlético to be champion, as it was with 1-1) with enthusiasm. What was really exciting , apart from having won the title, was that the entire Camp Nou stayed to applaud Atlético de Madrid”, pointed out the president, who reviewed that “magnificent players and, above all, great people have passed” during their more than a thousand games as club president.

The second League was last year, “the Pandemic League”. “The last four, five games were very tough,” Cerezo recalled. “We had the good fortune of beating game by game until Valladolid arrived (on the last day with the 1-2 victory that made it champion). We will always remember that we have been champions of a League without public,” he added.

“These were difficult times, because seeing an entire League and the end of another without an audience in a field like ours is very sad,” said the president of Atlético, who also spoke about the change of stadium, from the Vicente Calderón to the Wanda Metropolitano: ” It was a shame, but, indisputably, it was a change for the better. No one is going to forget the great moments of the Vicente Calderón”.

“Another of the great important moments of my time as president was the day we opened the Wanda Metropolitano. It was exciting,” he added.

He also recalled the figure of Luis Aragonés, “a myth in the history of Atlético de Madrid”, and Fernando Torres, “that a wonderful stage was here, where he became a great, international player and everyone loved him”. “I will never forget the recognition that he received when he arrived here, with a full field. A very exciting day that all of us atletico experienced,” he added. He also highlighted Diego Forlan as “a magnificent player and scorer”, who was awarded the Golden Shoe with the club.

On the occasion of his thousand games, completed in the 0-1 win against Manchester United, Cerezo received a commemorative plaque days later in training at the Ciudad Deportiva de Majadahonda. “It is a moment I will never forget. Thank Miguel Ángel (Gil Marín), who is my partner and my friend for many years, for the detail. I have given so many plaques to all the players and that they give it to you is exciting,” he concluded.

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