Simeone: ‘We need to keep going, whoever is in front of us’ | OneFootball

GRIEZMANN, THE BEST PLAYER YOU’VE COACHED?

“Quite a few will get jealous. I’m grateful to have had the chance to work with a difference-maker. He arrived very young, played as a winger, stuck out wide and just running up and down the flank. He went through three difficult months to understand where he was and where he had come from. We started talking about how he could play more centrally, that he had the qualities to do it. He has incredible mental strength, tremendous physical ability... many times he has scored the highest number of goals year after year, which has allowed us to compete. He is one of the most important footballers I’ve had.”

WHEN DID YOU FIND OUT ABOUT GRIEZMANN’S GOODBYE?

“There are conversations you don’t talk about, that remain private. We’ve talked a lot, and I’ve given him my opinion as a coach and as someone who cares about him. I’m not his father, nor his friend, I’m his coach, and I’ve always tried to help him, because he has returned that affection and care so I could respond in the same way. We’ve talked, he told me what he was feeling, I understood it and shared it, as always.”

LESSON FROM THE PREVIOUS MATCHES AGAINST BARCELONA

“An important opponent, at an important moment in the competition, where there are no minor rivals. The Champions League is complex, even more so in the quarter-finals. We know Barcelona’s quality, how strong they are at home, and we are here to compete and put in a performance where we believe we can hurt them.”

WHERE CAN YOU HURT BARCELONA?

“Tomorrow from nine o’clock, hopefully we’ll be able to show it and you’ll be able to see it.”

DOES THE TEAM ATTACK BETTER THAN IT DEFENDS?

“All teams, when they attack better, defend worse. Barcelona are one of them. You play with risks, you have the ability to score a lot of goals, and that favors their choice. Barcelona’s approach is perfect. If they concede one goal, they have no problem scoring three. We are in more of a process of attacking better than we defend.”

SITUATION WITH THE BOOKED PLAYERS

“I’m not aware of the bookings.”

IS THERE MORE CONFIDENCE ABOUT ELIMINATING BARCELONA AGAIN?

“We know where we are, who we’re going to face, we know the respect involved, but we’re very excited. We need to keep moving forward and it doesn’t matter who is in front of us. The important thing is to keep moving forward.”

WORDS FOR GRIEZMANN

“What I said about Antoine came to me six hours ago. I saw him, I knew he was coming to the press conference, and I said, it’s a wonderful opportunity to let the coach step aside and let the person come through, and to convey what I feel.”

WHAT HAPPENED WITH OBLAK?

“Jan is better, working very well. I felt he wasn’t at 100% and it was better for Musso to play. Hopefully we can have him for the next match in Seville.”

DO YOU DREAM OF THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE?

“No, I’m only thinking about Barcelona.”

HOW MUCH DOES THE LEAGUE MATCH AFFECT IT?

“It won’t change much.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.