Simeone hints at Atletico departure after shock Copa del Rey exit

The Rojiblancos have gotten the better of the likes of Liverpool, Real Madrid, and Barcelona but struggle against third division sides.

Diego Simeone insists “football is very changeable”, possibly implying that this could well be his final season at Atletico Madrid.

Atletico were knocked out of the competition after a narrow 1-0 defeat against Cornella on Tuesday.

The shock exit at the hands of Segunda B side was described as one of the worst results in Simeone’s 502 games in charge for the La Liga giants.

Big shock in Spain. Cornellà, a regional 3rd tier side from Barcelona, knock La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid out of the cup. Cornella’s ground is the tiny one by Espanyol. At the end, their players went to a fence and celebrated with people by the shopping centre. pic.twitter.com/80vm26mEp1
— Andy Mitten (@AndyMitten) January 6, 2021

It was, however, not the first time that the Rojiblancos suffered such an upset as they exited the Copa del Rey after a 2-1 loss to third division team Cultural Leonesa last season as well.

Speaking after the match, Simeone said that he would try and make amends for his side’s poor cup performances if he remains at the club.

“We’ll look for solutions next year if we’re here,” said the Argentine, who is tied to Atletico until 2022, cryptically, as per Marca.

“Football is very changeable, but you have to be open to all possibilities. We have to be open to whatever the club decides.”

Simeone is currently in his 10th season as the Atletico manager. He has led the team to La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa de Espana, Europa League, UEFA Super Cup, success while also guiding them to Champions League finals twice.