Atletico Madrid Manager Diego Simeone has dismissed the idea that the club went out of their way to deliberately make Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham look bad.
The 20-year-old Englishman was the focus of Atletico ire last Sunday, as a frustrated Bellingham slid in late on Angel Correa in the closing stages of the match. Correa would then be ruled out of their next match with Osasuna, and it was not lost on many that the Atletico Madrid announcement of that injury featured a picture of Bellingham’s challenge.
On Sunday, the Argentine recovered to help lead Atletico Madrid back from two goals down to beat Cadiz 3-2, grabbing their first and last goals. During the post-match press conference, Simeone was asked if he would understand if some people had doubts about Correa’s injury, implying that those doubts were about the veracity of it.
“No, I don’t care what the rest think,” was Simeone’s abrupt response.
Some appeared to be hinting that Atletico had deliberately kept Correa out of action in order to make Bellingham look bad.
“I had a very strong blow to my knee, I sprained it, I couldn’t be in the previous game, with Alvaro’s sending off Griezmann was alone up front, I wanted to force myself with a little pain to help the team and it turned out well,” Correa told Marca after the match.
With Memphis injured and Morata suspended, Antoine Griezmann would have been Simeone’s only available forward, had Correa not played. Naturally, those suspecting Atletico of bending the truth are probably in a loud minority, but clearly it made enough of a splash in order for El Chiringuito to use their question to Simeone on it.
