Simeone: We Must Accept Defeat

Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone stated that his team must quickly refocus after their Copa del Rey final defeat to Real Sociedad on penalties. The Argentine admitted that the Basque side deserved to win and that such situations must be accepted.

“First, we have to accept it. There’s always another team that also wants to win and does things to achieve that. We have to accept these situations, learn from them, and stay focused on our goals. Now we have to start over, as happens when a competition ends. We need to concentrate on the next match, against Elche, and then we have another game on Saturday, but the ultimate goal is to be in optimal form for the Champions League clash with Arsenal. For that to happen, we need to be as prepared as possible for tomorrow. We are better than last year. Back then, we lost in the Champions League round of 16 and the Copa del Rey semi-finals. This year, unfortunately, we lost in the Copa final and are in the Champions League semi-finals. The team is performing well. They know it’s a privilege to be among the top four in Europe and that we must accept such losses,” Simeone declared.

He noted that the recovery of injured players Ademola Lookman and Alexander Sørloth is progressing as planned. Simeone has yet to decide which of his two goalkeepers to start, as Jan Oblak is now ready to return to the pitch from his injury.

“We’ll see how Sørloth and Lookman’s recovery progresses; they have minor injuries. We hope they will be fully ready for Saturday’s match. It’s possible, that’s what the doctors are telling us. David Hancko is also improving, but I don’t think we’ll be able to count on Giménez. I still haven’t decided whether to go with Oblak or Barrios. Obviously, we have some idea. Oblak is improving, but Barrios is developing. Let’s hope that each of them can help us in these matches,” Simeone explained.