Bayern Munich were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League at the semi-final stage once again as Atletico Madrid destroyed Pep Guardiola’s hopes of winning the competition before leaving the club.
This is their 3rd exit at the hands of Spanish opponents, Barcelona and Real Madrid having knocked them out on previous occasions. For Diego Simeone and his men, it’s another Chmapions League final.
Here’s how players, managers and pundits reacted after the game:
Pep Guardiola
Pep Guardiola has achieved massive success in his career with Barcelona and Bayern Munich. But it looks like he will not be able to lift the UCL trophy with the German giants before he leaves for England.
Here’s what he had to say after the game:
“It was my aim to achieve this. At Barcelona, everyone asked me this question and it has been the same thing here. We have tried our best but it hasn’t worked out. In terms of my period here, it’s up to you what you want to think.”
“I think I have helped the players here. I am very satisfied with the performances. Maybe it wasn’t enough but in the end, I am satisfied with everything that has happened here. Everything is good. I have done my best. The players know that.”
“I have given my life for this club, from the first minute to the last and we played well tonight. Maybe we played not so well at other times. I am very proud. It was a real honour to train these players. I have really enjoyed it here and I am sure the future at Bayern Munich is perfect with these players.”
“Titles are just numbers, statistics. I wanted to reach the Champions League final here and I didn’t achieve it but it doesn’t change my opinion about the way I have performed. Yes, we are sad now and we want to go to Ingolstadt [on Saturday] to secure the Bundesliga title.”
He was obviously asked about the disappointment of not delivering a Champions League to which he replied, “Is this the biggest disappointment of my career? No. You are disappointed when you don’t play well. It’s a Champions League semi-final. It was the same when I was at Barcelona and we lost to Chelsea [in 2012]. We tried our best to score that night but we didn’t get through.”
“The most important thing is this club has a great future, with great players and a great mentality. I just wish the best for the future at this club and I hope Carlo Ancelotti [the incoming manager] can keep the same level going.”
Diego Simeone
Once again Simeone has proven his ability to get the best out of a squad that are not usually considered as one of the big boys. The manager was very pleased with the team’s performance saying, “I really have to say we played against the best team I have faced in my whole career. It was unbelievable how they played. It's unbelievable what we have achieved.”
"It was great to see my team play with such intensity. When Bayern missed their penalty, we had a good chat in the half-time break and we coped with the pressure they put on us in the second half.”
"We achieved our goal, we have seen that we are a very strong team, but we were really good defensively.”
Simeone also praised Jan Oblak’s heroics in the match. “They were two great saves by the goalies, I have to say how difficult it is to cope with this situation at Bayern, playing away from home.”
“We have played against two of the three best teams in Europe. We've knocked them out, and I'm very proud of that.”
Philippe Lahm lamented the mistakes that cost his team. Speaking to fcbayern.de he said “Atlético punished us on the break. We tried everything. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. It's bitter to be knocked out after a game like that. We can still finish the season celebrating. It's a pity we haven't rewarded ourselves and the coach for the last three years.”
Thomas Muller who missed a crucial penalty for Bayern also spoke about the result. “Football can be extreme at times. We did many things right and a few things wrong. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. I've rarely witnessed an event like this here. It's quite a setback. Of course, I'm disappointed because I didn't score from the penalty.”
Antoine Girezmann who was one of Atletico’s heroes of the tie said, “We were prepared to suffer today, and indeed we had to. We wanted to score a goal today, and we succeeded.”
Twitter reactions:
Several players and critics took to twitter to express their views on the match:
Translation: You have to dream until your dreams come true. We are at the end!
Translation: Simply thank you all! We continue with our dream!
Translation: Happy to share with you this time! The athletic continue dreaming! You hop
