The Atlético de Madrid goalkeeper, Jan Oblak, appeared before the media after the defeat against FC Barcelona and was very critical of the start of the game for the rojiblanco team: «We looked like another team as we started and after minute 25. It is not a matter of approach, it is something in the head, something mental. We enter with the brake or with fear. We waited for Barça to hurt us and then we woke up. And it is not the first time, it has happened to us quite often in recent years.
The Slovenian has indicated that the reason for this bad start for the Cholo Simeone team is not explained and considers that the solution lies in the attitude of each footballer: «It is in the head of each one, it is a psychological thing. We have to stop this habit of giving away the first parts many times and then we wake up. It’s going to change with confidence and lately we haven’t had a lot of confidence and things get complicated at the slightest”.
The goalkeeper said that in general terms they played a great game, “but you have to start like that from the start, not after minute 25″. In any case, he has been convinced that the group will carry out the season and end up entering Champions League positions. «Yes, clearly. And we are going to be in the Champions League surely, I have no doubt about this. It will be difficult until the end, and it is true that you have to improve your forcefulness. But I have no doubt that we are going to achieve the minimum objective of entering the Champions League and there is still the Cup left and I think we are going to go far. The season doesn’t end in January, it ends in June.”
Xavi: “We have known how to suffer, we played an excellent game in defense”
For his part, the FC Barcelona coach, Xavi Hernández, was very satisfied with his team’s victory at the Metropolitano, which puts them the sole leader three points above Real Madrid. The Catalan coach has highlighted the defensive work of his team: «We were very good in defense, very supportive, very generous, we made a commendable effort, they have left their skin. We have abused the pass back to Ter Stegen. In your own field you have to have more alternatives to get out of the pressure. But there is an opponent who squeezes you, backs you up, who has faith, who has courage, but I think we played an excellent game, mainly in defense”.
The one from Tarrasa acknowledged that in the second half there were moments in which they had the feeling that they could have tied them: «Before we could have made it 0-2. But with a tight score they can tie you on any play. There are phases that you do not dominate, you do not control and we have known how to suffer ».
Regarding whether today the need to win prevailed over style, Xavi conferred merit on Atlético de Madrid: «It is limited to the fact that there is an opponent who complicates your life. We want to dominate and create chances, dominate with the ball. Practically my first commandment is to have the ball, but on the contrary, he pushes you up, he put a very good pressure on the man. But today we did well on defense.”
Lastly, Xavi highlighted having achieved victory without Lewandowski and without Jordi Alba: «It was a very difficult game, Atlético made us suffer, they are a physical team, they win duels, people push, it is difficult to win here. I am very satisfied.”
Simeone: “If they tell me beforehand that we would do 20 bad minutes and 70 good ones, I’ll buy it”
As for the local coach, Cholo Simeone has assured that if they told him before the game how the script was going to be, he would have signed it: “If they tell me before that the first 20 minutes you are going to suffer, you are going to be down, you are going to to lose, you won’t be able to get out… and then 70 very good minutes, I’ll buy it. But in those 70 minutes the most important thing is the goal, he did not appear ».
According to the Argentine, the team lacked “personality” after recovering the ball in the first minutes: “A team came in with more security, more confident, has more play, and from that positional game they made us defend ourselves. We didn’t defend badly, but when we recovered the loss Carrasco, Koke, Griezmnan, Llorente, Barrios… That didn’t make the team grow. When we did not lose it, we began to gain meters, the rival withdrew and changed the film. Too bad we didn’t put it in.”
Finally, Simeone insisted that “in the 70 minutes we had 20 shooting situations, six or seven on target, Griezmann’s twice, I’m sure I’ll say it’s the game I want to play. We created the situations, we played in a rival field, we had the weight of the game… but in this beautiful football, forcefulness is the most important thing.
