Atletico Madrid head coach Diego Simeone claims Inter are the strongest team in the Champions League ahead of Arsenal, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain.
Simeone’s side sealed a last-gasp 2-1 victory against Inter on Wednesday night to hand the Italian side their first defeat in the Champions League this season.
The result means Arsenal are now the only remaining unbeaten side in the Champions League after their impressive 3-1 win at home to Bayern Munich.
But despite their defeat in the Spanish capital, Simeone believes Inter remain the toughest test for any Champions League side.
‘There’s no doubt about it. Inter are the strongest team in the Champions League right now,’ Simeone said.
‘That’s why we played a first half to hinder their play. We knew that in the second half we could express our full repertoire, with top-class players like Griezmann, [Alexander] Sorloth, and Nico Gonzalez, who came on very well and allowed us to score in the final move.
‘It was very nice but the idea, regardless of the result, was the same. I don’t know how to live in my comfort zone, I prefer to stay that way.
‘You have to work with faith, love, and quality. I have players who follow me, and that’s crucial for every coach.
‘Today, there were strikers on the bench who wanted to start, and when they came on, they showed their worth.’
Simeone appears to have changed his stance from last month after he claimed Arsenal were the best team Atletico Madrid had played this season following their 4-0 defeat at the Emirates Stadium.
When asked if Arsenal were the best team Atletico had played this season, Simeone told Amazon Prime: ‘Yes, I would say the best team we have faced this season.
‘They compete so well, their players run and run and they have quality all over the pitch. They deserved to win today and I want to congratulate them.
‘It is a learning curve. We just need to keep improving. I thought we competed really well to begin with. From 60 minutes they were the better team and deserved to win.
‘We have to put this behind us now and we need to focus in training on the things that went right and we need to make improvements as well.’