Diego Simeone signs new Atletico Madrid deal

Diego Simeone has agreed an extension with Los Rojiblancos until 2020, after spending Monday afternoon and evening at the Vicente Calderon putting the final touches to his new contract.

And as he spoke after signing the new deal, he buried for good any speculation about a potential move to Manchester City, insisting that he had made a conscious choice to stay at a club which he believes is still growing.

The former Argentina captain has transformed Atletico since taking over at the end of 2011, leading them to their first domestic league title in 18 years last term and putting them back among Europe's elite.

Atletico won the Europa League at the end of Simeone's debut season in charge and reached the final of the Champions League in 2013-14 where they lost 4-1 to Real Madrid after extra time.

They thrashed Chelsea 4-1 to claim the 2012 European Super Cup, won the King's Cup a year later by beating Real in the final and defeated their neighbours over two legs to secure the Spanish Super Cup in August.

Real will again be their opponents in the quarter-finals of the latest edition of the Champions League, with the first leg at Atletico's Calderon stadium on April 14 and the return at the Bernabeu eight days later.

"The club has once again put its faith in a group of people that is doing very well, and the stability that brings gives us the strength to keep on growing," he said in a statement.

"The club is in an era of absolute growth and I am choosing to stay where I am. That is for certain.

"Sometimes in life it's difficult to make a decision, because you're unsure or don't have a choice. But I am absolutely certain of the choice I am making because I am convinced that the club is going to carry on growing."

"Simeone epitomises the values of our club like nobody else," said Atletico president Enrique Cerezo.

"Passion, strength, nobility, hard work, solidarity, courage, heart... He demonstrated all these in his years in football, where he gave his entire body and soul for the Rojiblancos."

Simeone's words say far more than his mere decision to sign a new deal - and they appear to end once and for all any speculation that he will be leaving Atletico Madrid in the summer.

The rumours that Manchester City were desperate to have him replace Manuel Pellegrini appeared to carry plenty of weight, all the most so considering the verve and passion that Simeone brings to his side - qualities which have been thin on the ground at City.

On Monday rumours began swirling that Simeone's new deal meant little to City, and that the reported €6 million compensation clause in the event of him moving on would prove no barrier to a club as rich as City.

That remains as true as ever - but Simeone's carefully-phrased insistence that he has made a conscious choice to stay with a club that he believes is yet to reach its potential says everything.

Anything can happy in football, of course, and money always talks - but for the moment at least, Atletico and Simeone are not listening.