Atletico Madrid head coach Diego Simeone admitted his side only have themselves to blame as they lost 1-0 at home to Barcelona.
Defeat to the current La Liga leaders means Atletico end the weekend outside of the Champions League qualification spots.
Atletico did have chances after the interval, as Stefan Savic and Ferran Torres were sent off for an off the ball tussle, before Ronald Araujo produced an incredible clearance to deny Antoine Griezmann in added time.
OFF THE LINE FROM GRIEZMANN! 😱
So close to an Atleti equaliser! 🔴⚪ pic.twitter.com/9Cad0oQVov
— Viaplay Sports UK (@ViaplaySportsUK) January 8, 2023
The result is Atletico’s first league loss since early November, and their first La Liga home defeat since losing to Real Madrid on September 18, but Simeone was in pragmatic mood at full time.
“The reality is we lost. It’s true the team deserved to get a better result, which did not appear, because we were not forceful enough,” as per reports from Marca.
“The two penalty areas are decisive. We did more good things than bad.
“After a poor first 20 minutes, the team competed as I wanted, but that did not change the result.”
Up next for Atletico is a trip away to Almeria next weekend before facing Levante in the Copa del Rey on January 18,
Images via Getty Images
