Atlético de Madrid presented the new faces of its men's and women's teams at the Metropolitano.
MADRID, 21 (EUROPA PRESS)
Atlético de Madrid manager Diego Pablo Simeone has highlighted the "enormous" goal that he, his technical staff and "all" of his players have "ahead of them" at the club this season, in reference to the "Welcome Night 2025" held this Thursday at the Riyadh Air Metropolitan Stadium with 35,114 spectators in attendance.
"We all have a huge goal ahead of us. The club's growth around the world is incredible, and we have to nurture that goal, we have to work hard, and by always being together, we'll be able to continue growing like Atlético de Madrid is growing," said 'Cholo' during his speech at an evening reception for the new signings.
"At this point, a lot of new players have arrived, very young, very enthusiastic, and eager to do well. We have a group that has been working for quite some time within the team, and I have no doubt we're going to compete," said the Argentine coach.
"Our goal is for you to feel as important as we do on the pitch, for us to be able to convey to you what you would want to do if you were playing in our shoes. That's what we want," Simeone asserted.
Atlético Madrid held a new edition of "Welcome Night" at its stadium, following last year's successful initiative, as a way of presenting all the players and coaches of the men's and women's first teams, as well as Atlético Madrileño, to their fans.
After Italian businessman Gianluca Vacchi kicked things off by DJing, the reserve team introduced its squad, and Fernando Torres, Atlético legend and current Madrid manager, took the microphone. "It's always a pleasure to come home. It's always special to step onto our home pitch and be here with all our fans; for me, of course, because I grew up here and it's always felt good," he commented.
"It's a special moment for the fans and for this extraordinary group of footballers we have here today, who dream of one day being able to stand in front of you all playing in this stadium. So, it's a very special night," described "El Niño" Torres.
Then it was Atleti Women's turn, whose squad took to the field with reinforcements Amaiur Sarregi and Macarena Portales. The music continued to liven up the evening with a short concert by Dani Fernández, a self-confessed Atleti fan, and later the main event arrived with the welcome from the men's team.
In addition to Frenchman Antoine Griezmann, youth-team midfielder Pablo Barrios received a standing ovation surpassed only by that of Argentine striker Julián Álvarez, who was the last to be introduced just before Matteo Ruggeri, Marc Pubill, Johnny Cardoso, Dávid Hancko, Giacomo Raspadori, Thiago Almada, and Álex Baena took to the field.
Midfielder and captain Koke Resurrección then took center stage, quickly grabbing the microphone. "The reception I and my teammates received on an incredible night with many athletic kids I've seen on videos and who I'm watching wearing the jerseys their parents or grandparents brought them, just like I did when I was little," he recalled.
"What I want to convey to the fans is to have confidence in us. Obviously, we didn't start well the other day, that's the reality, because we wanted to win. But I have absolute confidence in my teammates. I see how they train, I see how they work, I see how we give it our all, and I'm sure that very important things will come this season," he added.
"I'm convinced. We have a very important rematch on Saturday, we have to start winning again, and hopefully we can do that," he said, referring to the upcoming league match against Elche CF. "And thank you to everyone who came to welcome us tonight, to those of you who are at home. It really has been an incredible day. And always, Forza Atleti!" Koke concluded in his address to the fans.
