“Don’t acknowledge & greet Juventini” Simeone’s instructions for Morata

Alvaro Morata’s return to Turin didn’t go as planned for the striker, at least from the sporting point of view. The bond between Morata, the city and Juventus as a whole is very strong- so much so that his current manager Diego Simeone didn’t want him distracted by it in the return leg of the round of sixteen of the Champions League.

In fact Atletico Madrid’s manager prohibited Morata from meeting with anyone affiliated with Juventus on the day of the match, to the point of instructing him not to acknowledge fans trying to get his attention on the bus ride from the hotel to the stadium. This was a way to keep Morata focused on the game, a strategy that ultimately didn’t produce the results Simeone was looking for