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Cape Town - Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone was delighted to see his team progress in the Champions League after a penalty shootout against PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday.
The second leg at Estadio Vicente Calderon, just like the first leg in the Netherlands, finished goalless, sending the tie into extra time and beyond.
Each side hit eight penalties, with Luciano Narsingh of PSV the only player to miss, allowing Juanfran to send Los Rojiblancos through to the quarter-finals, much to the delight of Simeone.
"It makes me happy to finish the match with so many young kids such as Lucas, Giménez, Griezmann, Koke, Kranevitter and Saúl,” the Argentine coach said.
"I assess it with great joy, that is why I celebrated Juanfran's penalty as I did. There is a huge effort of all the players, medical staff, coaching staff and people who follow and support us daily. It's a joy for us to be with Atlético de Madrid again in the quarter-finals."
After dealing with the pressure of taking the winning penalty, right-back Juanfran admits that he would prefer to avoid the situation again, while winger Antoine Griezmann is already looking forward to the next round.
"It was my turn. It's my first penalty with Atleti and the first one I score,” Juanfran said. “Let's hope that in the future I don't have to do this again because it was a great suffering, but if I have to, I would do it again."
"It will be beautiful in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, and if our fans are like they were today, it will be difficult for any rival," Griezmann concluded.
