After being dismissed during Atletico Madrid’s heartbreaking 3-2 loss to Liverpool at Anfield on Wednesday, Diego Simeone confessed that his actions were “unjustifiable”.
The Atletico manager got angry in the added time when Virgil van Dijk scored his 92nd-minute winner.
Simeone who witnessed his team regain their composure after going down by two with a Marcos Llorente double, was separated following a scuffle with a Liverpool fan located behind the technical area.
Talking after the game, the Argentine mentioned that he had to put up with abusive language from the crowd all the time. “There have been insults all match, but I’m the one who has to stay calm and endure everything: insults, gestures, etc. My reaction isn’t justifiable, but you don’t know what it’s like to be insulted for 90 minutes non-stop,” Simeone told Movistar.
The 54-year-old also implied that the referee Maurizio Mariani could empathize with his predicament, but Simeone must abide by the rules and act with restraint. “Never very good when we react as managers, is it? But I’m human,” he said.
Nevertheless, Simeone recognized the spirit of his players after they conceded a goal. “Until a wonderful goal by Virgil, the match was ours on the edge that left us with a bitter taste, but with spirit,” he ended.
