Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo yesterday laid the blame firmly
at the feet of his team's players for the 6-1 humiliation they suffered at the
hands of Barcelona on Saturday night.
Any thoughts Atletico may have had of being seen as title contenders went
firmly out of the window as they found themselves down 3-0 after just nine
minutes of Saturday night's game.
Atletico coach Javier Aguirre accepted responsibility for the defeat at his
post-game press conference, but speaking on Monday, Cerezo saw things
differently.
"We are all responsible, but at the end of the day, the ones to blame are the
ones who are out on the pitch. They are the ones who play, because at the end of
the day, neither I nor anyone else plays in the match," he said in sports paper
Diario Marca.
However, with his side still on the top half of the table and with their next
game at home to local rivals Real Madrid, Cerezo didn't want to dramatize
events.
"We lost against a great team (Barcelona) and we have to look ahead to the
future. The players had a bad game, they know that and they are the ones who
have to sort it out on the pitch," he said.
"I apologize in the name of the players, the coaches and in the name of the
club," said Cerezo.