Atletico Madrid striker Luis Suarez made sure to not step on the Manchester City badge in a classy gesture before Tuesday night's Champions League quarter-final.
City won the first leg 1-0 thanks to Kevin De Bruyne's second-half strike, so they have the slight edge heading into next week's finale at the Wanda Metropolitano.
The Sky Blues were perhaps relieved Suarez named on the bench ahead of kick-off, especially as the Uruguayan was at the double against Alaves last Saturday.
Atletico manager Diego Simeone chose not to introduce the 35-year-old even after his side went behind thanks to fine work from Phil Foden to set up De Bruyne. Even though he would not feature in the first leg, Suarez warmed up with his teammates and was seen sidestepping the City badge as he walked out of the Etihad Stadium tunnel.
The former Liverpool star's respectful act was replicated by midfielder Rodrigo de Paul, who was introduced in the second half and picked up a booking moments before City took the lead.
Although his side's stubborn resistance was broken with 20 minutes remaining, Simeone insisted Atletico can carry "a lot of enthusiasm" into next Wednesday's second leg. "It was a difficult game against an extraordinary team," the Argentine said.
"They have great individuals and great players. In the last 20 games at this ground they had scored 60 goals. We tried to play a tight game to come out on the counter-attack in the first half. They didn't shoot on goal, but we couldn't hurt them. In the second half, when we counter-attacked the most, they scored the goal. They won 1-0 and we will go into the second leg with a lot of humility and a lot of enthusiasm."
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Although Atletico will have home advantage in the second leg, Simeone also admitted that could count for little against the Premier League leaders, whom many regard as "the best team in the world". He added: "You always have to look for something that will take you a step further. They play the same way at home or away and are possibly the best team in the world. With humility we will compete as far as we can."
Atletico travel to Mallorca for their next La Liga encounter on Saturday while City host title rivals Liverpool in a monumental clash at the top of the table. The Reds arguably come into the fixture in better form having defeated Benfica 3-1 in their own Champions League quarter-final first leg to make it a club-record eight consecutive away victories.
