Diego Simeone backs Antoine Griezmann to silence doubters after Atletico Madrid return

Diego Simeone has defended Antoine Griezmann over his slow start to life back at Atletico Madrid.

All eyes are on Griezmann currently following his return to Atletico Madrid from Barcelona, rejoining his former club on a loan deal that will become permanent if he plays more than half of the games he is available for this season.

In his first start Griezmann did very little as Atleti battled out a 2-1 away win over Espanyol, and attention quickly turned to Wednesday night’s Champions League opener with Porto.

Griezmann came off the bench, to mostly cheers rather than whistles, but he again failed to make much of an impact in the 0-0 draw.

And while some are getting ahead of themselves after just two appearances, Atleti boss Simeone is taking the situation one step at a time, as he so often does, hopeful that Griezmann can turn things around and silence the doubters.

“They (the media) are making a movie and a morbid situation that clearly gives us the importance of having recovered an extraordinary footballer like him and that we can enjoy,” he said, as cited by Sport.

“We hope that he gets better and can respond to the people that criticise him.

“He has a challenge to move forward and consequences for what happened in the past.”

Tags Antoine Griezmann Atletico Madrid Diego Simeone FC Barcelona
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