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Rather than focusing on the threat of the Argentine star, the Los Colchoneros boss chose to praise Ernesto Valverde's work at Camp Nou.
Diego Simeone dismissed the idea that Atlético de Madrid feared Lionel Messi during Saturday 's showdown with Barcelona, preferring rather to praise the "incredible work" of the day. Together Ernesto Valverde.
Atleti heads for Camp Nou, trailing by eight points in the standings, which means that nothing less than a win is likely to end their hopes of winning the La Liga.
The Barca's last triple charge was led by Messi, who scored 42 goals in 39 appearances in all competitions during another spectacular season.
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But, rather than focusing on the scary form of the Argentine talisman, Simeone is keen to highlight Valverde's work, especially in light of the disappointment caused by the quarter-final exit of the Champions League shocked by the last season.
Asked about Messi, Simeone said at a press conference: "The word is not" scared ", but respect.
"There is seniority in Barcelona and what I would call the incredible work of the coach, who keeps them alive in three competitions.
"Last season, they lived in Rome what happened to us in Turin [when Atleti lost 3-0 to Juventus], and they could not win everything, but they tried the treble.
"Now they occupy an enviable position in the league, in the Champions League … it's hard to be such a team and continue to win." Valverde, with his style of play, knows a season unbelievable."
20 – Direct free kick in the top five European leagues in the last five seasons:
20 – LIONEL MESSI
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11 – Miralem Pjanic
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9 – Paulo Dybala
9 – Daniel Parejo
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4 – Cristiano Ronaldo.Unbelievable. pic.twitter.com/c8lN0R1MNc
– OptaJose (@OptaJose) April 5, 2019
Messi has scored six straight direct kicks this season, including once in each of his last three appearances in the league, while the 20 goals he has scored on free kicks in the last five seasons are almost double. of any other player of the year. The five best leagues in Europe.
"It's pure quality," Simeone said.
Simeone did not win any of his 14 league matches with Barca as Atleti's head coach, while his last championship win at Camp Nou was under Jose Murcia's lead in February 2006.
However, the former midfielder is more concerned about taking the most points from his remaining matches, not just from the Saturday clash, for which he expects that Diego Costa and Alvaro Morata are ready and fit.
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"Never winning makes me super optimistic, of course!" he said.
"If we win and we do not win the next games, it will not matter, we need to focus on continuous improvement."
"It makes me happy that the Barca believes we are his closest rivals, it speaks well of our players."
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