Atlético Madrid president Enrique Cerezo expressed his satisfaction following his side's Champions League first leg win over Liverpool, and even joked that Anfield was too old to pass UEFA's standards ahead of the return fixture.
A goal from Saúl Niguez was enough to give the Spanish club an advantage before they make the trip to Liverpool, who had only lost twice this season before Tuesday's defeat.
Cerezo has spoken of the boost it will give his side after they were written off long before a ball was kicked.
As quoted by AS, he said: “I always sleep well. There are days when you taste glory and others when you don’t. According to the media, a week ago we were dead and buried and now we are very much alive. They had gone 30 games unbeaten and people were saying they are the best team in the world.
"We are happy with the result but we still have another game to go. But we have rediscovered ourselves and that is the best news.
“We have an excellent coach who will be with us for a long time. And we also have an excellent team.”
Ahead of the second leg in March, Cerezo praised Atlético's fans while also joking about the 'old' condition of Anfield.
“He who strikes first strikes hardest", he added. "To see our fans so committed to the team was amazing. It was absolutely spectacular.
"Anfield is a great stadium but it’s old. It probably wouldn’t pass the UEFA inspection if it had to do it.”
Liverpool are known for their superb home record in the Champions League, yet Cerezo is clearly confident ahead of the trip to Merseyside.
It will be interesting to see if the Reds use his comments as motivation to overcome the deficit in the tie, or whether the Atlético players deliver on his confidence and earn a famous result on the road.
Source : 90min