Sevilla FC-Atletico de Madrid: Coaches and players react as spoils were shared in San Francisco

Sevilla Futbol Club and Atletico de Madrid played out an entertaining 1-1 draw at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Saturday, bringing to an end the LaLiga EA Sports Summer Tour through Mexico and the United States.

Rafa Mir opened the scoring five minutes after the hour, beating Atletico defender Stefan Savic with a deft move to create a pathway to goal. Angel Correa then equalized late on for Atleti, turning in a rebound and finally beating Marko Dmitrovic, who was outstanding in the Sevilla goal.

Players and coaches offered their thoughts on the preseason finale for both teams after the final whistle blew in California.

Mendilibar content with the performance

Sevilla withstood early pressure from Atletico — including a triple chance inside five minutes — to enter halftime goalless. Mir‘s individual effort then gave the UEFA Europa League holders a temporary lead, and Sevilla nearly won the match with a late flurry of chances following Correa‘s equalizer.

After seeing his side allow 20 shots on the night, Sevilla head coach Jose Luis Mendilibar walked away from the match feeling his team finished the match better than they started it.

“I’m leaving the game happy,” Mendilibar told the media at Oracle Park. “We exchanged chances. They counterattacked well at the beginning. We scored the first goal, but they equalized with a strange sequence in the second half. It was a nice game for the neutral.”

Mendilibar was further complimentary of the reception on the Summer Tour, which concluded Sevilla’s busy seven-game preseason slate.

“Everyone has treated us well,” he said. “The training camps that have been organized have been very good. At first, you’re scared to see how everything is organized. It has been a good 10-day trip, and in five days, we start LaLiga.”

Correa pleased with tying goal

Atletico Madrid‘s hero on Saturday night was one of their World Cup winners, Angel Correa, who poked in a rebound in the 84th minute — just 14 minutes after he entered the match — to make sustained attacking pressure pay off.

“The team played a great game. We created a lot of chances,” Correa said in the mixed zone after full-time. “Their goalkeeper had a great game, we couldn’t score a goal with all the chances we had. Personally, I entered in the final minutes, and with the goal, I was able to help us draw.”

Diego Simeone also believed he saw a great game from his tired Atletico side, which has played friendlies this preseason in South Korea and Mexico in addition to the United States.

“I loved the team’s performance, they had many scoring chances,” Simeone told the media. “They are looking to attack and do damage. … An exciting league season is about to begin, and we have to get ready. LaLiga is tough and competitive.”