Diego Pablo Simeonecoach of Atlético de Madrid, declared last night on the ESPN network that Rodrigue de Paul, in the pillory after his mistake in San Sebastian, “He gave more to the national team than to Atlético,” “He’s an extraordinary boy, it’s a pleasure to have him, because of his Argentinian essence, what he generates and what we can discuss with him. He had important moments and matches, but not yet the stability of the team,” added Cholo in the interview, in which he admitted that Julián Álvarez “is one of the footballers who made me the most happy with his arrival”.
“Because of the expectation that what I see of him has generated in me, because with his youth he has already won the Copa Libertadores, the World Cup, the Champions League. When we had the opportunity to having him, we all did a great job of bringing him in and getting him to understand that. It’s not just a step in his career, because he has energy, football, work, humility. We look forward to helping you do whatever you can. There is a story he can create at the club,” added Simeone about the “spider”who has already scored three goals for Atlético this season.
“He has movements that make him very difficult to detect, he has a very good right-footed and left-footed shot, good diagonals, good timing, and he can also do it away from goal, because he is committed to the team. That’s how we saw it at Manchester City. I’ve seen so many games of him in other positions, like what happened with Argentina against Ecuador. I think that His best potential is out there, free, behind the top 9, to work in this way in a team that has a lot more ball than its rival”, he finally declared about Julián Álvarez, whom he asked against Real Madrid to play on the left wing “because he was a different match, due to the characteristics of the rival, but not “He is there to do this in every match”.
Returning to Rodrigo de Paul, Simeone explained to ESPN that De Paul “gave a lot to the Argentine national team, more than to Atlético de Madrid, that’s clear, with his teammates, not alone. People want more and he is very important for us because of his differential vision of the game. Rodrigo is world champion and people ask him for more. In Argentina, he moves more lying to the right, with a double central steering wheel and this helps him, in addition to having Messi pass. And here he usually plays as a double central midfielder, which also explains the difference. He’s an extraordinary guy, it’s a pleasure to have him, because of his Argentinian essence, what he generates and what we can discuss with him. “He has experienced important moments and matches, but not yet the stability of the national team.”
Finally, Cholo admitted that “it is difficult to compete with Real Madrid and Barcelona”, he recalled. “The objective that the club sets for itself is to be in the Champions Leaguebecause it allows us to continue growing”, and he stressed that “the numbers don’t lie and we have conceded few goals in La Liga. To become champion, you need good defense, “No one becomes champion with 100 goals conceded.”
