Diego Simeone has defended Atletico Madrid’s new badge pre-Villarreal, explaining “development in the world exists and it’s continuous”.
Atleti’s decision to redesign their badge in light of their move to the newly-named Wanda Metropolitano stadium next season has been met with overriding scepticism, but Simeone feels his club should not be criticised for modernising their brand.
“We beat Bayern and drew with Barcelona at Camp Nou, but it’s true we struggled at Anoeta and Sevilla,” the Coach said at a Press conference for Monday’s game.
“Tomorrow, we’ll face a rival that are used to competing well with a dynamic and very dangerous brand of football.
“The new badge? Development in the world exists and it’s continuous. There are other clubs who have gone through this situation.
“There are people who like it and those who don’t, but it’s normal. We’re only thinking about tomorrow’s game.
“Griezmann’s barren run? Forwards go through spells like these and Antoine knows that football is about the present.
“At the moment, he’s farther away from goals than usual, but his game is important for the team.
“He has to keep working hard and looking at what can be improved. The goals will come as a consequence of both things.
“Koke in the middle? Koke’s position is very changeable. I don’t think Koke plays on the left, he’s always played as a central midfielder.
“We’re talking about centimetres. With Tiago, the team are more secure, but that doesn’t affect [Koke’s] importance to the team. When we attack, Koke’s position doesn’t change much.
“Madrid are in a fantastic spell and they deservedly top the table. The other teams haven’t had consistency with their results and that’s why we’re one of those sides today.
“On a game and results level, all the games have been very fair, except for isolated cases.
“Villarreal? I imagine that they’ll play with Bruno and Trigueros, who will offer good support to their attackers. They can take the game where they feel most comfortable.”
