Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid crashed out of the Champions League on Tuesday night. Arsenal beat them 1-0 at the Emirates to claim the semi-final tie.
It was a bitter ending for the Spanish outfit. They'd fought hard to earn a 1-1 draw in the first leg, but Bukayo Saka's clinical finish proved decisive in London.
Simeone didn't make excuses after the loss. "Our opponents deserved to get through," he told UEFA officials.
According to the Argentine boss, Arsenal capitalised ruthlessly on their opportunities. "They took their big chance in the first-half," Simeone noted, "and they deserved to get through."
His team had chances of their own. Simeone acknowledged they weren't sharp enough when it mattered most.
"We weren't clinical enough with the situations we were in," he explained to reporters. "We improved in the second-half but things didn't fall our way."
Despite the disappointment, Simeone stressed his players gave everything. "We wanted to compete and we have done that," he said calmly.
Reaching the semi-finals itself is a major achievement, he added. But winning trophies is what truly matters in football.
