Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone has no doubt that Antoine Griezmann should have won the UEFA Best Player award that was given out to Cristiano Ronaldo. Simeone has been amazingly influential with Atletico, guiding them to the Spanish league title in the 2013-14 season, two champions league finals and the Europa League crown in 2012.
He has transformed Atletico into a tenacious energetic side feared across Europe and was quite clear who his preference for UEFA’s coveted award was, though he also made it a point to praise Ronaldo.
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"Whenever guys win these awards it's deserved. My congratulations to Ronaldo. Success as a team strengthens individual achievements, so certainly winning the Champions League and the European Championship has helped put him up there. But for me the best player, without doubt, was Griezmann."
Antoine Griezmann had the best year of his career yet when he played a pivotal role in taking his side to the Champions League final. The Rojiblancos beat the favourites of the competition in Bayern Munich and Barcelona on their way to the final, only to fall at the last hurdle to their biggest rivals.
He also had a stellar Euro 2016 campaign, winning both the Player of the Tournament and the Golden Boot, but he would be denied by Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal although the Real Madrid star had to be substituted off in the final because of injury.
Griezmann’s manager goes on to discuss his opinion on the Champions League draw that has put Atletico with Bayern Munich, PSV Eindhoven and Rostov.
"The Champions League is always difficult. I'm happy with the teams we've been drawn against, we're a team who find that tough challenges and difficult opponents bring out the best in us, and hopefully we'll continue to show that."
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Simeone is also effusive in his praise for Griezmann but also points out that he’ll need time to regain full fitness. The 46-year old also comments on whether Atletico fans can expect any more signings in the last days of the window.
"He's a player who makes the difference; certainly in the top three in the world. Obviously, he'll have to go through the normal process of coming up to full speed after coming out of the pre-season period, as is the case for every player."
"The club is working with us to see whether or not there's anything on the market that could be brought in and would improve the team; getting something done or not depends on that."
