Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone avoided a war of words while responding to criticism directed towards him by Real Madrid defender and captain Sergio Ramos. Ramos had earlier criticised Simeone during a wide-ranging interview to radio channel COPE.
In response to Diego Simeone suggesting at the beginning of the season that the La Liga was “dangerously prepared for Madrid to triumph”, the Real Madrid skipper said, “I admire Cholo, I like his philosophy and the performance that he brings out of his teams, but I don't like people who act like they are the victim”.
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Diego Simeone though refused to take the bait. Avoiding a war of words, Diego “Cholo” Simeone said he would love to have Ramos on his team.
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“What he said is not my opinion. I admire and respect Ramos and if I could choose players from outside the group, he would be one that I would take”, Simeone said.
Atletico Madrid face Malaga at the Vicente Calderon on Saturday where Simeone expects the Los Rojiblancos to be given a tough challenge by Javi Garcia’s men.
Speaking of the upcoming fixture, Simeone said, “Garcia is a coach who always sets out well in games. I think this will be a close one, Malaga compete very well, they concede few goals, though it's true that they haven't scored many.
He added, “The stadium will be full, we play a very important game and we have to be ready for that. This season is better than the last in terms of numbers, but there's a lot left to play for.”
In what could be a major setback, Atletico captain Diego Godin will miss the game through a hamstring injury. His injury layoff could also extend to the Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid. Fernando Torres has been in red hot form having scored in 5 straight games for the first time in 2003. Atletico will be relying on him to keep their title chase alive.
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Atletico Madrid are equal on points with Barcelona but are in second place due to a worse head to head record. They have the opportunity to pile on the pressure on Barcelona as they play as their game is before Barcelona’s. If they win, Atletico could temporarily be in pole position in the league.
Saying he did not want to think much into the future, Simeone stated, “Talking about what we have to do to be successful would not be good because we don't know where we will finish."
