Simeone praises derby referee after controversy
Diego Simeone said Atletico Madrid paid the price for its missed opportunities in a heated LaLiga derby draw at Real Madrid, but offered praise for the referee after he awarded a controversial first-half penalty.
Julian Alvarez opened the scoring from the penalty spot in a dominant first half for Atletico, but Kylian Mbappe cancelled that out five minutes into the second half to earn a 1-1 draw.
Atletico had five shots in the first half, with only the penalty on target, but was unable to make the most of those chances as Real Madrid failed to test Jan Oblak before the break.
Madrid and Atletico have now drawn their past three meetings in all competitions, the longest run of draws in this derby since a run of five between November 1978 and January 1980.
"We played a very good first half but we didn't have the clarity to take advantage of the chances we created," Simeone said.
"We could have managed those opportunities better. That led to a draw despite the feeling that in many parts of the game, it looked like we could have won it.
"With them scoring early in the second half, they hit play on the crossbar and played with a higher intensity after that.
"After 20 minutes or so we got the game a little more in control and had our chances too... It ended in a draw a match in which maybe both teams were left thinking they deserved more."
Simeone praised referee Cesar Soto Grado after controversy surrounding the build-up to the derby after Real Madrid lodged a letter of complaint against the Spanish league's match officials.
Both sides complained over contentious plays in this match, Atletico for a studs-up challenge on Pablo Barrios by Dani Ceballos and Los Blancos for the penalty that gave Atletico the lead when Aurelien Tchouameni's foul on Samuel Lino was awarded after a lengthy VAR review.
"I thought the referee handled it in the best way he could," Simeone said.
"For some people, Ceballos deserved a straight red... At least I think he should have checked it in the VAR, but others may disagree...
"He made his decision and that his decision to make and VAR crew thought that they didn't need to call the ref up. In the end, I thought he did a good job overall."
Real Madrid stayed top of LaLiga on 50 points, one ahead of second-place Atletico, who missed a chance to leapfrog them. Barcelona, third on 45 points, visit Sevilla on Sunday with a chance to close the gap in the title race.
