“We are in difficulty, but I trust my players”

Diego Pablo Simeone spoke to the media after Atlético’s loss to Chelsea (0-1) in Bucharest. The coach found positive aspects in the performance of his team, whom he trusts for the return. Before, he analyzed the meeting in Vamos:

Atleti always gets up, says Koke …

In a match there are always many results. The match was very hard on by both teams, very few goal options, they took advantage of that opportunity to score a great goal, but it was tight and even. We did a well-grouped defensive job, for Correa, João, Suárez, Lemar… taking advantage of a quick transition, but we were not so precise. The game that was seen was seen. The first half controlled by them, but with vertigo situations on our part; and a very even second, where the goalkeepers did not make many stops, if there were any. The return will be tough, like everything in the Champions League. You have to seek tranquility to live with the team moment.

90 minutes left. What is there to change?

Keep working, take care of what is done well and improve on what is not going the best way. Footballers who came out of COVID are recovering, which always affects the set-up. Dembélé leaves me situations to take into account. I repeat, great team work.

There were moments when the team put pressure on and complicated Chelsea …

Going to three weeks is too much, there are many games before. Chelsea play well, they have speed and we were able to control it. We lacked some precision to position ourselves better in attack. The results are not accompanying us: work, work, work …

Carrasco and Trippier will return.

The boys have not responded badly. Seeing the team’s work and the involvement, I feel good. I trust the team. If we were in September and they tell me that we are first in the league and lose 0-1 in the first leg of the round of 16, I will sign it. But the timing is not good.

“We are in a difficult moment”

It has cost them to attack.

We thought we had to play it as they saw it, it cost us the precision of sustaining the game from the recovery and it was a very worked match. There were hardly any chances to score, at times we managed to control their good attack and we needed to associate better and have precision from the recovery of the ball, that cost us.

Have you lacked courage?

No I dont think so.

Would the approach change?

The matches when played cannot be changed, when choosing what to do. I would have, I would have … no use. The reality is what happened, there were no goal situations, but we needed to associate better, we are in a difficult moment, we have to work to move forward in this moment that we have to live together and we will continue working as we have always done.

Why was there no more stealing attempts upstairs?

Because I understood that the team should play as they saw, press high in certain moments where we thought we could recover and if not stay low to try to steal. There were no chances, the goal appeared and a difficult tie, we are going to try to improve what we did today.

How do you see the tie?

Now there are three weeks to think about the game. Based on what we saw today and what we found in the second half, we will assess what is the best way to pass the tie in their field, which is what we all want.

How is the team psychologically? Are you optimistic?

We are in a difficult moment, these five games mark it more based on the results than what happened on the field. We have to occupy ourselves, work and try to improve. They have an advantage, 90 minutes left, I trust my team.

Lemar was the best, do you see him as a lane?

Marcos and Lemar’s place is not where they perform or feel better, but I understood that they had to play and fulfill that effort they made to help the team. I liked Dembélé, he can give us important things. He was seen alive, with vitality, energy and we will take that into account among the things that I stay with today. A great defensive job that was not enough to win a game that we wanted to win.