Simeone: ‘The team’s fine, we lost the Copa, now it’s Elche’ | OneFootball

El Cholo Simeone spoke to the media days after losing the Cup, but with Atlético de Madrid regrouping for La Liga, where they will face Elche.

HOW DOES THE TEAM RECOVER?

“First of all, by accepting that there is always another team on the other side that wants to win, that does things well to win the final. They deserved to win it. Life is about accepting the situations that come up, learning from them as you go down the paths ahead of you, and not straying from what we are trying to achieve.”

GETTING THE INJURED PLAYERS BACK

“We’ll see how Sørloth and Lookman recover, and hopefully they’ll be available for Saturday, according to the doctors. From there, we’ll count on them. I don’t think Giménez will be ready yet, and Hancko is progressing very well, and we hope that, in this process, he can also help us on Saturday.”

HOW DO YOU APPROACH THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SITUATION?

“We have to start over again, as always happens when an important competition like the Cup comes to an end. We have to refocus on tomorrow’s match, put our energy into doing things well, and from there keep competing on Saturday, and when the Champions League comes around, arrive in the best possible way. But to arrive there in the best possible way, we have to start by being good tomorrow.”

AVOIDING LAST YEAR’S MENTAL SITUATION

“We’re better than last year. Last year we went out in the round of 16 and lost in the semis. This year, unfortunately, we lost the final and we’re in the semifinals; it’s not the same. The team is doing well, it knows we’re in a privileged position, among the four best teams in Europe, and it knows and accepts that we had to lose in the Cup. We move forward on our path, and what is our path? Elche.”

OBLAK AND BARRIOS’ CURRENT FORM

“I still haven’t decided, as always, who will start tomorrow. Oblak is better and Pablo is starting to grow. Hopefully, in the matches ahead, they can help us.”

CRITICISM OF JULIÁN AFTER THE FINAL

“(Silence) The truth is Julián Alvarez played a great match.”

HOW DOES IT MAKE YOU FEEL THAT THE FANS BELIEVE IN YOU?

“We have given them the feeling and the belief that we can get to that place, that they can believe in what we do, in being where we are, because the team has shown that it can be there. When you get to these stages, it can go your way or it can not. The other day the people were incredible, from the team’s arrival at the stadium to after the defeat… all the words of gratitude, as I said the other day. We are victims of nothing. We are thinking about moving forward, continuing down the path, and seeking what we want in only one way: by working.”

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