Madrid revenge no factor for Simeone

Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone would be unwilling to use revenge as motivation if his side face Real Madrid in the Champions League final.

Simeone’s side booked their place in the decider in Milan on May 28 despite a 2-1 loss to Bayern Munich in their second leg on Tuesday.

Atletico face either Manchester City or Real Madrid in the final, with their city rivals having beaten them 4-1 in the 2014 decider.

Despite that, Simeone said he would happily face Zinedine Zidane’s men, who are locked at 0-0 ahead of their second leg with City on Wednesday.

“I am happy,” he said of potentially facing Madrid.

“We want something else now but I don’t believe in revenge. There are new chances in the life, not revenge. And this is another chance.”

Antoine Griezmann’s second-half goal proved decisive for Atletico, who progressed courtesy of the away goals rule as they reached a second final in three years.

Simeone said his side’s preparation would be better in 2016 than it was two years ago, when they faced Barcelona in a crucial La Liga clash a week beforehand.

“We will have the chance to better prepare for this final. That year we played a final against Barcelona one week and the following week another final against Real Madrid,” he said.

“We will have at least 15 days to work on this final. It doesn’t guarantee anything at all but we will have both teams in better condition for one of the greatest events in the world.”

Simeone’s men are still in the race for the league title, level on points with leaders Barca ahead of Sunday’s trip to Levante.