‘Don’t know what happened inside’ – Joao Felix hits back at Atletico Madrid fans

On-loan Barcelona forward Joao Felix was once again on the scoresheet against his parent side Atletico Madrid in the Blaugrana’s 3-0 win over Diego Simeon’s men last night.

Speaking about the fixture, the Portugal international explained that it was a perfect match for his side not only because they scored three goals but also because it came away from home and against a team that is known for its resolute defence.

“We played a perfect match, I think, we scored 3 goals away in this stadium, against this team, which we all know defends well, everything was perfect and we are happy about that,” Felix told ESPN (h/t joaofelixismo2).

He went on to say that he always enjoys playing against big teams and yesterday’s match was something that he enjoyed a lot.

“I tried to enjoy it as much as possible, I always like games against big teams where the fans provoke you even more, I just want to help the team and that’s what I tried to get the 3 points is the most important thing,” he said.

Speaking on jeers and criticism

Joao Felix scored a goal against Atletico Madrid. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

Within the venue, the fans erupted with boos directed at Felix during the warm-up, despite President Enrique Cerezo’s attempt to suppress the tension from the box by assuring a welcoming reception.

With each touch of the ball, even in his attempts to apply pressure on Jan Oblak for ball recovery, Felix found himself subjected to the unwavering wrath of the fans.

The tension between the Atletico fans and Felix was not just confined to the walls of the stadium. In the outskirts of the Civitas Metropolitano, the footballer faced the wrath of the fans.

Some trashed his jersey with drink cans, food remains, and papers, while others even set fire to a personalized t-shirt bearing the player’s name.

After knowing all this, the young footballer had nothing against the fans as he said,

“Atletico fans do not know the things that happened here during the time I’ve been here. The fans don’t know what happened inside, I understand them but I shouldn’t be seen as the bad guy. Even my relationship with Atleti players is very good.”

He added, “What they say from the outside is that I get along badly with my former Atleti teammates, and that’s not true, I was talking to Samuel Lino and Lemar, everyone who passed by hugged me, they came to talk…”