Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone expressed his enthusiasm for the club’s rebuilding process after losing a chunk of the core in the transfer window.
The Argentine admitted that performing consistently over seven years is no easy task and praised his club for dealing with departures well and is confident that they can do so yet again.
“It’s a continuous challenge and today we are faced with one because big players who have given a lot to the club are leaving.
“We want Atletico to compete again as we have done so far.
“It has been seven and a half years of finishing second, third, first, second… that isn’t easy.
“A renovation has been underway since last season when Fernando Torres, Gabi, now the likes of Juanfran who were references of the team and my guys who gave me everything, and did amazingly well,” Simeone stated.
“Now we are preparing the likes of Oblak, Saul, Gimenez to transition into becoming leaders.
“They are not the same as the others were, you have to look how to empower them and convince them,” he said.
Among many potential arrivals at the Wanda Metropolitano, Benfica star Joao Felix stands out as the cream of the pick. Simeone is confident of the club’s ability to nurture young talents and is of the opinion that Felix can grow to his potential as well. But the 49-year-old also admitted that the team might have to play differently should the Portuguese be integrated.
“If Joao Felix and others arrive with different characteristics to those who have been here before, then we will have to update ourselves.
“In training we will see how they are going. It is clear that this year’s challenge is one of the toughest since we arrived at the club.
“Atletico are a club who historically buy young players to develop.
“We want a guy with talent and who can absorb our ideas. Like Oblak did when he came, who was not the Oblak we know today, and like Gimenez or when Lucas Hernandez arrived at the academy, like Griezmann when he came, who not the same as he is today,” he concluded.
