Quique Sánchez Flores remained with the positive part of the elimination to Real Madrid. To the ‘rojiblanco’ head coach, the positives were “our attitude and intensity. We always had presence in our opponent’s half of the pitch. The team tried to play. We were facing a tough opponent, they closed down well and it was a match without lots of attacking, although we played much better than at the Santiago Bernabéu. We truly thank the fans for their attitude, as they dreamt for a week and kept us afoot.”

The Atlético de Madrid manager didn’t want to speak about his counterpart at Real Madrid and said that “I don’t have anything against Mourinho. I prefer to focus on Atlético; our goal is to be in Champions spots in May and keep our balance.”

The worst things about the elimination at the hands of Real Madrid were the injuries to Agüero and Reyes. Quique believes that “we’re having a strange season. Reyes had to come out and he’s a very decisive and talented player. There’s a feeling of a negative streak, but it’s going to pass. Any team would be affected by the absence of two of its best players. Take Cristiano and Özil away from Real Madrid and see what happens. If you take away Kun and Reyes, it weakens you. Kun and Reyes are irreplaceable right now.

“I have full confidence in the group; it’s an intelligent bunch. They work hard and know what they have to do. They prepare for each match with intensity and beyond where we might make mistakes, they end up accomplishing their goals. You just have to take a look at them in recent years. They achieve things by pushing forward and grasping, but always achieve their objectives. They’ll surely be amongst the best in the Spanish league in the month of May,” Quique Sánchez Flores wrapped up.