Simeone: "It is a game closer to the goal"
Diego Pablo Simeone held is regular press conference after training at the Sports City, ahead of Saturday's game at the Riazor. He spoke of the wonders of Azerbaijan and how his team will face the end of the season.
Before Saturday's visit to the Riazor stadium, Diego Pablo Simeone reviewed the attitude of his team two days after returning from Azerbaijan, Tierra del Fuego, a trip that the Argentine appreciated. "We were together, which is good after a defeat. That means that we see each other all the time. We got to know a fantastic country that is growing tremendously. The friendly helped us give some players minutes. We already trained well yesterday afternoon and today we begin to do the important work. It’s a game closer to the goal," he said.
About the Deportivo game, on Saturday at 10pm, Simeone spoke about how the team they’re coming up against is improving. "The results have allowed them to regain a bit of confidence, which is essential in football. They want to be players, with the ball at their feet. Bruno Gama, Riki and Valeron are their strengths going forward and Pizzi is good from set pieces". The Galician squad contains Silvio and Pizzi, loaned from Atletico, for which Simeone also had words. "These are guys who are getting minutes and that helps them with their growth," he said.
The Atletico fixture list sees them end the season against some teams fighting to avoid relegation to the Second Division. Asked if that will put extra pressure on Atletico, Simeone believes that the League must be evaluated as a whole, not for the last weeks. "I think the league has a lot of games and it is important how you face every week, not just the last ones. The tournament had 38 games and the squad is judged on that. The entire campaign is what decides how good you are" he said after training.
The trip to Azerbaijan helped us spend time together, get to know a fantastic country and give some players minutes
After the defeat in the last game, the coach says his team is focused on the games that come and not think about the past. "We have not spoken much of Saturday's game. We are focused on thinking about the next game which is what interests us and what brings us closer to our important goal of reaching the Champions League," he said.
Before concluding, Simeone also pointed out that his team will have one day less to rest ahead of the cup final than rival, Real Madrid. "From the point of view of the preparation we believe we got right. With Chelsea we also played two days after them before the Super Cup. With the days we have to prepare there is no excuse. We play Saturday, Wednesday and Sunday, there will be no problem," he said.
