Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone praises Alvarez's performance

In the 2024-25 Champions League group stage, Atletico Madrid overtook Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 and won. Coach Diego Simeone praised Julian Alvarez for helping the team win.

In the 25th minute of the game, Pablo Barrios was sent off with a red card, leaving Atletico Madrid with 10 players. In the first half stoppage time, Leverkusen scored a goal to take the lead. However, in the second half, Alvarez scored twice to give the team the win.

In the post-match interview, Simeone mentioned Alvarez's performance and said: "When we considered signing Julian, it was because we saw his potential. He has incredible experience and is a player with a bright future."

"Hopefully we can help him as a team and hopefully he can stay humble and keep giving his all and keep fighting. I have no doubt that over time he will take a special place in the history of this club."

The 24-year-old Alvarez moved from Manchester City to Atletico Madrid in August 2024 and signed a six-year contract. In the post-match interview, Alvarez admitted that this game was the most important game since he joined Atletico Madrid, allowing him to achieve a breakthrough performance.

"Maybe, considering everything that happened, missing a man early on and losing the ball," Alvarez said. "It was a difficult situation, but we stuck to our style of play, the team gradually improved, we equalized the score and in 10-on-10 situations we saw a chance to win. These three points are very important points and it will help us continue to believe in what we are doing."