Atletico Madrid manager, Diego Simeone has revealed why his side failed to make it to the Champions League group stage this season.
The Argentine said his team had paid for a lack of effectiveness through the group stages after Tuesday’s 1-1 draw at Chelsea.
The draw at Stamford Bridge confirmed their ousting from the Champions League.
Saul Niguez’s header on the hour mark gave the Spain capital city club hope of a turnaround, but Roma’s 1-0 victory over Qarabag in the group’s other final game ensured that the 2014 and 2016 Champions League finalists crashed out.
After finishing third in the group, Simeone’s side will now be playing Europa League football.
Simeone told reporters after the game that his team had not played well over the six games.
“Above all in football it is about being effective, more than possession or tactics.
“It is clear that we did not have that in this Champions League we have played. And we have paid for that.
“But the team has played well, worked hard, just lost one game, in the 93rd minute. This is not an excuse, just the reality. It is not good to be out of the Champions League, but the season is very long and we will judge it at the end.
“We looked for it until the end. I am proud of the team, we worked hard, were competitive. We just tried to do what we could do in the game. This type of situations for me, aside from not going through, for sure it was a step forward for the team. They did not stop trying for it. We have a bittersweet taste.
“[Roma] were not worse as they got more points than the other teams.
“In the end we got more points [four] from games against the group winners [Roma] than the bottom side [Qarabag].
“We have learned things, we can improve for sure, but we were always competitive through the group,” he said.
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