Antoine Griezmann praised the pitch conditions that saw Tottenham Hotspur players slip on multiple occasions during their 5-2 Champions League defeat to Atletico Madrid on Tuesday evening.
Spurs, currently struggling to stay out of the Premier League relegation zone this season, conceded four times in 22 minutes against Diego Simeone’s side.
Two errors leading to goals were committed by back-up goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky, who slipped for Atletico Madrid’s opener then miskicked the ball into Julian Alvarez’s path for the LaLiga side's third.
Griezmann believes Atletico players had an advantage against Tottenham Hotspur
Spurs subsequently suffered a 5-2 loss to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their quarter-final tie with a similar Micky van de Ven slip gifting the home side a second goal on the night.
Kinsky was substituted for regular starter Guglielmo Vicario after just 17 minutes, who conceded himself just five minutes later.
Antoine Griezmann, who scored and assisted in the victory, told Canal+ that ‘our pitch was on our side’ in reference to defensive errors committed by the Tottenham Hotspur players.
We're used to [the pitch], the opposition isn't. We tried to hurt them from the start, and that's what we did,’ he added.
The Atletico Madrid forward, who featured on FourFourTwo's list of the best attacking midfielders in the world, also expressed sympathy for Kinsky, claiming that ‘it wasn’t the best decision’ from Igor Tudor to take the Czech goalkeeper off so early.
Griezmann said: "I think it's a shame. [If the coach] starts with that goalkeeper, you have to see it through. Mentally, it must be very tough for [Kinsky]."
Another game involving Atletico Madrid was the source of recent controversy in Spain, prompting a complaint to the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF).
Diego Simeone’s side beat Barcelona 4-0 in the Copa Del Rey semi-final in February, but a disallowed goal from Pau Cubarsi made headlines after semi-automated offside technology failed to intervene, leading to hand-drawn lines being used for the tight call.
In response, Barcelona published a statement that said: "The club expresses reasonable doubts regarding the use and proper application of the technology, particularly in millimetre-level decisions that are not accompanied by conclusive technical explanations."
Atletico Madrid return to LaLiga action against Getafe this weekend, followed by the second leg against Tottenham Hotspur next Wednesday.
