Diego Simeone rested the lack of stability of Atletico Madrid at a “crucial moment of the season”, but was delighted to end it at a high.
Halfway through the season, Atletico was part of a race with three horses for the LaLiga title, but a large drop-off in March saw her losing ground on the final winners Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Atletico finished the season in third place at 76 points, 12 behind Barcelona.
They ended their season with only one loss in their last six games (W4 D1) and unsubscribe with a 4-0 win over Girona on Sunday.
Alexander Sorloth scored a second half Hattrick, with two of those goals that came in stopping time, and Clement Lenglet added further shine to the score.
“For us the season is not over yet,” said Simeone. “We knew we had a chance, and this great timing was suitable for us because it looks like the atmosphere we will experience in the United States [at the Club World Cup]And we treated it this way.
“We knew that we would have a team that plays good football. We started the game under our opponent, but we gradually improved and we found the right spaces to attack.
“The substitutions gave us extra energy and we won important balls that could harm us. We scored goals from Alex and Clement, so we felt good.
“Now those who keep on Madrid will take a break to prepare for the training on the second day. It is just a break to concentrate and place all the excitement in the club World Cup.
“We missed stability at the crucial moment of the season. The Getafe match was the turning point after watching Barcelona, and then everything became much more difficult.”
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– Atlético de Madrid (@atleti) 25 May 2025
Sorloth's hat trick means that he scored 20 goals in LaLiga in 2024-25, with only three players who score more goals in their debut campaign for Atletico in the competition this century.
In fact, he scored 10 goals as a replacement for this term, the most by a player in a single LaLiga season this century.
Julian Alvarez also played in his first campaign for Atletico, the campaign ended with 17 goals, after he had drawn a blank against Girona, although he set up the hat trick goal of Sorloth.
“Nobody knows; maybe if he played more minutes, he would have scored more goals,” said Simeone about Sorloth.
“The truth is that he scored 20 goals despite the number of minutes he played, so we didn't treat the situation badly.”
And on Alvarez he added: “There are many positive things, and everyone she wants to see will find them.
“What Julian did in terms of effort is incredible. He is a player with quality, presence and simplicity, and although he can score a goal, he prefers to pass on to his teammate.
“We need Julian; he is the player we have signed, and we hope he feels happy here. We have to help him all show his talent more.”
Atletico's Club World Cup campaign starts on 15 June against Paris Saint-Germain in the Rose Bowl in California.