Simeone: "This game was won by the group"
Diego Pablo Simeone praised the work of all his players after the big victory against Malaga.
The Atletico coach said that "against our rivals we are making a huge effort and work very well, like Levante and Elche we’ve had to do it again today with Malaga. Malaga tried to play their game, sitting back and looking to hit us on the counter. They defended well and we didn’t create many chances. We tried to move the game in several ways. In the first half and then we changed it adding Adrián and then with the power of Rodriguez. The match was won by the group. It was down to working hard and had it not been for the group, for the people who came, we would not have won."
Regarding the temporary leadership of the league he said "we only hope that Barcelona win and stay top as we’re used to. It would be so much nicer to be in this position at the end of the season but there’s a long journey ahead. We must begin to look at Valencia with a new manager, it will be complicated. And then there's another big game at the Calderon next week."
On the difference in the top of the table, the technician said "I am consistent with what I said. Look what it costs us to win a game. There is a huge difference between Real Madrid and Barcelona and for us it is the effort that we are trying to fight. But we can not go further because they have more possibilities."
Finally, the Atletico coach commented that "Gabi and Raul are very important players in this stage of the championship. The team changed because we looked for a way to break the game and succeeded. We finished with five defender due to the crosses from Santacruz. Those who came on responded and now comes a phase with a lot of game and those who don’t start will be really important coming on in the future."
