- Atletico Madrid drew 1-1 with Qarabag in Champions League on Tuesday night
- Atletico seem likely to drop into the Europa League after a poor group stage
- They sit third, four points behind second-placed Chelsea with two games left
- Gabi does claim that Diego Simeone’s side ‘will play to win’ the Europa League
Atletico Madrid captain Gabi appears keen to avoid the Europa League at all costs after labelling the competition as ‘a piece of s***.’
Diego Simeone’s men suffered a huge setback on Tuesday night in the Champions League as they drew 1-1 with minnows Qarabag, leaving them on the brink of dropping down to the Europa League.
Their second consecutive draw against the Azerbaijaini outfit has left them four points behind second-placed Chelsea in Group C with just two matches remaining, which are against the Premier League side and Roma.
Gabi and his Atletico Madrid team-mates drew 1-1 with minnows Qarabag on Tuesday night
Despite describing Europe’s second-tier competition in a bad light, the Atletico captain does admit that it has ‘given me a lot’ after he won the tournament with the Spanish outfit at the end of the 2011-12 season.
‘Today I would say it [the Europa League] is a piece of s***,’ Gabi is quoted as telling reporters after Tuesday’s disappointment.
‘But the Europa League has given me a lot, and if we have to play it, we will [play to] win it.
Atletico are on the brink of dropping into the Europa League following their draw with Qarabag
‘I think that now the chances of [qualifying] are very remote. We are disappointed, we have to be self-critical because we have not been able to win any of the two matches at Qarabag.’
Meanwhile, midfielder Gabi boldly admitted that new signing Diego Costa will not make a difference for Atletico if they continue to play like they currently are.
‘We need to win now,’ he added. ‘Diego cannot help us now and if we continue like this, the arrival of Diego will not be useful at all.’