Simeone reveals his opinion on Barcelona’s “defensive” way of winning against Real Madrid

Diego Simeone, coach of Spanish football club Atletico Madrid, spoke about the defensive way Barcelona played against Real Madrid in the first leg of the King’s Cup semi-final on Thursday, El Clasico.

Barcelona had achieved a difficult victory over its host Real Madrid with a clean goal at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium, and Xavi followed a purely defensive method after scoring the goal of progress, which raised the astonishment of many after the match, including Ancelotti, who expressed that explicitly in the press conference.

And where Ancelotti was asked about Barcelona’s defensive method, he replied: “It was a little strange to see him play like that. But they were very solid and had a team commitment…and shut down all the lines very well. Having to attack them with crosses is not the best thing, as I said before. And they led us to that.”

In the same context, Diego Simeone answered a similar question about his opinion of the defensive way Barcelona played against Real Madrid, saying: “Football is a game in which plans change during matches.”

He added, “Barcelona realized that at that moment they needed to perform in this way to win and they did it in the best way. What is said is said. What matters is what you see, what matters are the facts. This defensive method was comfortable for him, he defended in an organized way, and Real Madrid had no tricks. I congratulate Barcelona for the match.”

It is worth noting that the rematch between Real Madrid and Barcelona will be held on April 5 at the Camp Nou to decide who qualified for the King’s Cup final.