Atlético Madrid manager Diego Simeone expressed deep frustration over the individual mistakes that led to his side’s 4-0 Champions League defeat to Arsenal, where they conceded four goals in under 14 minutes during the second half. The result marked Atleti’s joint-heaviest defeat in the competition.
Simeone noted that his team had performed well until the first goal, a set-piece header from Gabriel Magalhães, but then failed to recover.
“We competed very well until the first Arsenal goal, then we couldn’t compete,” Simeone said. He emphasized that the loss was due to technical shortcomings, not misfortune. “It can come down to fine margins… and it’s not down to bad luck, it’s down to mistakes. They made the most of our mistakes.”
The coach pointed directly to defensive lapses, particularly from set-pieces, which contributed to two of the four goals.
“It’s individual mistakes that affect the team, it’s losing your man in a set-piece, for the third goal we were too meek and ended up conceding a goal from that,” he explained, acknowledging a harsh learning lesson for his side.