Simeone has Atlético on edge
It was far from a failure but hugely frustrating. Atlético have been excellent in this Champions League campaign, eliminating the likes of Barça and Bayern Munich on their way to the final. These efforts saw them slip out of the title race in the penultimate round of the league but made it to the Milan final with Real Madrid as opposition. They were the better team on the night or that’s how it felt. Looking back at the game, they conceded a goal that saw Ramos in an offside position and had Griezmann miss a penalty during normal time. Despite these setbacks they took the game to extra time and penalty kicks. They fell short in the lottery that is penalties and this has weighed heavy on Simeone.
He spoke to the media post-match clearly scarred by earlier events and his words have left a huge degree of doubt regarding his future at the club. “I need to sit down and reflect on matters”. Since those words everyone connected with Atlético are apprehensive about his future. The club’s recent success is down to Cholo and his methods. Behind the scenes he’s had the support of a club looking ahead, preparing a new stadium and opening new financial ventures to make them stronger in the future. Siimeone has overseen his team have to a league title win and Atleti have reached two Champions League finals.
These achievements have been achieved through a herculean effort which Cholo has been instrumental in overseeing along with his back room team of ‘Mono’ Burgos, ‘Profe’ Ortega , Godín, Gabi, Koke, the rest …It’s been torturous to reach two European finals and see both slip away in dramatic fashion on both occasions. Simeone has always had a disadvantage; his team has no BBC, MSN, no Muller, Douglas or Lewandowski, these players being out of the financial reach of the club. This time he appears to have reached the end of the line emotionally and this has generated these doubts. ‘He who doubts doesn’t love” and that’s why everyone connected with Atlético are on tenterhooks.
