'They follow him through brick walls' - Rio Ferdinand pays tribute to Diego Simeone's 'never say die' Atletico Madrid

Rio Ferdinand was left in awe of the way Diego Simeone gets his players to “follow him through brick walls” after Atletico Madrid reached the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.

Atleti overcame a 1-0 first leg deficit against Inter in the Spanish capital on Wednesday night by winning 2-1 to level the tie on aggregate before triumphing in a penalty shoot-out.

It sparked euphoric scenes at the Metropolitano Stadium, with Simeone at the centre of the celebrations after another famous European win under his guidance.

Atleti have twice reached the Champions League final under the former Argentina international, in 2014 and 2016, but lost on both occasions to rivals Real Madrid.

Former Manchester United and England defender Ferdinand, speaking on TNT Sports’ Champions League coverage, spoke of his admiration for Simeone.

“What I love about him is that he creates that culture, a never say die environment,” Ferdinand said.

“The passion, everyone can see it. Everyone shows passion in different ways, but you will not miss that he’s a passionate man.

“Whether you like his playing style or not, he has a group of players that absolutely follow him through thick and thin. They will follow him through brick walls.

“The way he galvanises people, the way he gets people round him and says we’re going to go together, trust me, believe me, and he gets it done. He’s punching way above his weight.”

Joe Cole was also impressed by the way Simeone gets his players and fans to rally round him, but didn’t see enough to believe that Atleti are a serious threat in the competition ahead of Friday’s quarter-final draw.

“It’s not for me the way he plays, but his character is for me. He’s a winner,” Cole said.

“When you see a manager who is in charge and so connected, not only with his players but with the fans, everything about that club is together and it filters through one man.

“When he wins you can understand the outpouring of emotion. It’s a hard place to go for anyone but I still don’t think they’ve got enough to progress through the last eight.”

The quarter-final draw takes place on Friday at 11am UK time and will feature two English clubs, Arsenal and Manchester City.

Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund will also join Atleti in the draw.

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