Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone has admitted that he may have been wrong to claim that La Liga was ‘boring’.
The Argentine Coach insisted last year that the top-flight of Spanish football was dull, but the tactician believes that reverting to an ‘Apertura’ and ‘Clausura’ style tournament – like his home country – won’t make the League more competitive.
“Judging by the figures we have seen here in the Spanish League, I’m sure that it would be more competitive – but not during the past 10 years,” he told a Press conference.
“Changing the duration of the competition won’t solve the problem because the main issue is the economic conditions of each club.
“Maybe I was wrong to suggest that the Liga is boring but it’s true that the current set-up doesn’t allow any possibilities for other teams to win.
“Atlético fans see themselves reflected in the current side – our situations are the same. Let’s just hope that they can come up with a solution to make the league more competitive.”
Atleti face Malaga on Saturday, with new signing Jose Sosa possibly in line to play.
“Bringing a new player in means that someone will probably leave. We’ll confirm that when the time is right. Sosa is a player who I have wanted in my team – since we were together at Estudiantes.
“He’s a very dynamic, attacking player and he can also play as a deep-lying centre-forward. We hope he can settle in as quickly as possible.
“He knows how I work and that’s a big help for us as he is exactly the kind of player we really need at the moment.
“[Malaga boss Bernd] Schuster was an extraordinary player and he has my complete admiration. I would have loved to have played alongside a player like him – a midfielder who had everything, every quality a footballer needs.
“At Málaga, the change is what you might expect when a new coach comes in – they’re more aggressive, and use the wings more… they are also dangerous from set-pieces.
“We’re just the same as the everyday member of the public who has to battle to keep afloat. We know what our virtues and our defects are and we know that we have no option but to continue along the same path, taking it one step at a time.”
