Saturday, 1st September, 2012

Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone has expressed his relief at the closure of the summer transfer window, insisting that if it were still open he could lose striker Radamel Falcao.

The Colombian produced a masterclass against Chelsea in the UEFA Super Cup final last night, scoring a first-half hat-trick which virtually settled the contest.

A further goal from each side saw the match end 4-1 to the Spaniards, but despite the second period having passed without another Falcao goal, there was little doubt who the star of the show was.


And Simeone has admitted that if Falcao’s performance had come just a few days before the transfer window closed, keeping him at the Vicente Calderon could have been mission impossible.

"Thank goodness the market is closed, because if we had played a few days ago we would have had real problems keeping him", said the Argentine coach.

"I believe that Falcao is one of the strongest strikers in the world", added Simeone.

Atletico Madrid can now shelve worries over losing Falcao until at least January.


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