Atlético Madrid coach Diego Simeone praised Wednesday night the support of his supporters, decisive in the qualification of the Colchoneros for the quarter-finals of the C1 on penalties against Inter at the end of a match mad.
“The only thing I can say to our supporters is thank you. The team rose to the occasion because we have all these people behind us who give us energy,” Simeone said at a press conference.
“We had a plan and we followed it. The players didn’t wonder if they should run or not, they ran and that’s because this stadium is incredible. The team managed to win when no one believed it and it’s because they gave their all,” he added.
Asked about the contribution of Antoine Griezmann, scorer of the equalizing goal for his return from injury, the Argentine technician estimated that the French striker had been “present in the most important moments of the match”.
“We left him on the field until he requested the change and when he realized that the team needed freshness because he was tired, he requested the change,” explained Simeone.
“It’s normal to be disappointed because we are coming from a final, but we have to congratulate the team because they fought hard,” reacted Simone Inzaghi, coach of Inter Milan. .
“In extra time, we had the match and qualification in hand, but we were unable to capitalize on our chances. Atlético was a great opponent,” said the Italian.