DIEGO SIMEONE TO BATTLE JOSE MOURINHO In Britain, Argentine Diego Simeone is best remembered as the man whose reaction to a petulant kick by David Beckham resulted in the England star famously being sent off during a World Cup game in 1998. That is a harsh reflection on his playing career, though, because Simeone was a magnificent midfielder, winning 106 international caps and starring in Serie A for Inter Milan and Lazio as well as guiding Atletico to a league and cup double in 1996 (their most recent La Liga triumph). And now, Simeone is carving a new career as one of the games hottest managerial properties, with his approach to coaching mirroring the blend of winning attitude and technical aptitude that characterised his playing days. If you asked Diego Simeone how his Atletico Madrid team have overcome all the odds to progress to the Champions League semi-finals, where they will face Jose Mourinhos Chelsea, as well as topping La Liga with just six games remaining, he would provide you with a simple answer: Hard work and humility. Indeed, that is exactly the mantra he has been preaching on a weekly basis this season, as the football world continues to wonder when - or if at all - his steamroller of a team will finally run out of puff. Until recently, most people assumed it would simply be a matter of time. When, not if. But Wednesdays famous victory over Barcelona, where Atletico succeeded in knocking the Catalan team out of the Champions League before the last four for the first time since 2007, sent a loud and clear message: Atletico Madrid are for real. To a great extent, Simeones assessment of his Atletico teams greatest strengths - hard work and humility - is absolutely right. This is Chelsea 7th Semi Final and Atletico 4th Semi final. In Your opinion, who is gonna scale through?
Posted on: Fri, 11 Apr 2014 11:17:55 +0000
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