Atlético Madrid coach Diego Simeone spoke to the media on Saturday, less than 48 hours after a 4-0 win over FC Barcelona in the Copa del Rey and before Sunday’s La Liga fixture against Rayo Vallecano.
One of the more intriguing questions pushed the coach on his feelings after a rollercoaster couple of weeks, and an emotional Simeone explained that “honestly, if you ask me for a word that sums up my feelings for this club, I can’t find one.
“I am grateful, I am thankful every day for the place I have and for the affection I receive and for the luck I have had in sharing with players who have always brought an idea to the pitch and conveyed it with the passion I feel for this game,” Simeone said. “But I don’t have a word that can sum up and explain the feeling I have.”
Diego Simeone on his future
“I’m thinking about Rayo, I have thousands of things going on in my head.”
Simeone on the possible starting lineup against Rayo Vallecano
“You can never comment before the game on circumstances that have arisen, but what is true is that Rayo is in need, beyond the fact that they haven’t been playing recently. We also have our needs, to continue competing as we usually do. I’m not sure yet who will start tomorrow, but we have been working, as you see every day, with the players in an imaginary game. I always tell the players that we decide the lineup before the game, so in the time I have until tomorrow, we will decide who starts.”
Simeone on winter signings
“Obed Vargas is trying to fit into the team, as are Rodrigo Mendoza and Lookman. All three are in the same situation. They’ve come to help us, and we hope that little by little they’ll improve in training so that we can get more out of them in matches.”
Simeone on less than 72 hours of rest
“Nobody cares about that. What matters is the result, what we have to do is put out the players we think can best represent the game.”
Simeone on Johnny Cardoso
“As I always say, nobody cares about any of this. Tomorrow, what will matter is the result we get from the game, and from where we are, we will try to put out the players we think can best represent the team and play the way we want. Tomorrow he’ll probably get some minutes at Butarque.”
Simeone on managing emotions after the big win
“It’s not really about letting up, it’s about maintaining what the team is conveying, despite losing to Betis the other day. We had a very good first half, and we need to continue in the same vein, whoever plays. We’ve been saying it for years, and I can confirm it now that we have two more Champions League games ahead of us: we need everyone, and everyone means everyone. Whether it’s 60, 90, 40, 10 (minutes), whatever it takes, we need the team on the pitch and the group as a whole.”