This is how Griezmann left Atlético without a single shot on goal against Inter and thwarted Simeone’s plan | Soccer | Sports

At San Siro, for the first time this season, Atlético closed a match without finishing on goal. Part of the annoyance that Diego Pablo Simeone showed during his appearance before the press was linked to his disappointment with the problems his players had in generating offensive play. “We didn’t have any important situations in the first half, in the second we were a little more excited and made more dangerous plays. We couldn’t have as many goal situations as in the last matches,” reflected the Argentine coach with resignation.

In the attack plan designed by Simeone to try to harm Inter, the figure of Antoine Griezmann was key. The French striker was asked to look for the backs of Çalganoglou, Mkhitharyan and Barella. El Cholo understood that this space was one of the weak points of Simone Inzaghi’s system. The height of the event invited us to exploit the best version of Griezmann, who had remained discreet during the last matches. The little weight he had in the game once again highlighted Atlético’s dependence on him. The team greatly blames its shortcomings. He did not leave any threatening action throughout the match, neither in this weak zone of Inter that his coach had marked for him, nor in the area. A quarter of an hour from the end, Griezmann left the field without a shot on goal. He sprained his ankle and was replaced by Correa. “A trainer told me that the ankle is noble”, resolved Simeone with a certain coldness when asked about the Frenchman’s accident at the microphones of Movistar. “He twisted his ankle and hopefully it was just a sprain,” he briefly explained later in the press room. The club confirmed on Wednesday that the striker is suffering from a moderate ankle sprain.

Hoping to return to his best level at San Siro, Simeone did not give Griezmann a single minute last Saturday against Las Palmas. Chosen to be the creative footballer, his match sums up that of his team. He did his job without the ball and performed poorly when the ball fell at his feet. He couldn’t get rid of the feeling of exhaustion and lack of freshness that had invaded him in recent weeks. Simeone was waiting for that player who could create and finish and he didn’t show up as much as he would have liked to threaten Inter more. Griezmann was unable to grease or sharpen his attack and Atlético paid the price. He seems unable to change speed and with less ability to fly across the entire attacking front.

“We controlled the game for many periods, but in the first half we created few chances, or almost none to be clearer. In the second, it got a little better,” Simeone further underlined with an air of dissatisfaction with his team’s offensive performance. “We had to create more in the last 15 meters,” said Axel Witsel. “To reverse the situation, we surely have to be perfect in defense and we are going to have to do a lot more offensively than we have been doing,” he added to Oblak.

The Frenchman’s blackout and the absence of the nine until Morata came into play led an Atlético team, not very sharp in attack, to overthrow Inter’s defensive system. Llorente’s involvement as a striker only resulted in Bastoni’s release of the ball being concealed. He was barely able to enter the space face to face. The feeling conveyed was that when he managed to break Inter’s barrier and approach Sommer’s area, there was no pure finisher to resolve crosses into the area.

Inzaghi’s team averages 0.5 goals per game. History also says that Inter have never lost a draw in which they had to defend a 1-0 first leg victory. Eight times he found himself in this situation and on each of them he managed to qualify for the round. “Let’s see if on the way back we can give a little more than what we gave to be able to compete as the competition demands,” warned Simeone, once again revealing his dissatisfaction with the game played by his players. Griezmann included.

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