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Atlético trio stay grounded despite perfect start

Club Atlético de Madrid may have won three out of three in Group G but there is no danger of getting too far ahead of themselves with the players echoing Diego Simeone's caution.

Diego Costa (2nd R) celebrates after putting Atlético 2-0 up
Diego Costa (2nd R) celebrates after putting Atlético 2-0 up ©AFP/Getty Images

Club Atlético de Madrid trio Diego Costa, Toby Alderweireld and Arda Turan repeated coach Diego Simeone's mantra that they must not get ahead of themselves after making it three wins from three in Group G. They conceded the 3-0 victory at FK Austria Wien flattered slightly, and the hosts were not completely downcast – just desperate for a bit of luck.

Diego Costa, Atlético forward
The plan was to put a lot of pressure on their defenders from the first minute and that was the key. My first goal was beautiful. I always try to take advantage of the fact I'm really fast so I receive the ball and was able to overcome my marker. But the most important thing was the victory for the team, not whether I score – if I score of course I'm happy but the most important thing is being a champion.

I don't think we are through to the next phase yet - we have to respect all the other opponents and the other teams so we are just taking things match by match. In the Champions League there are really good teams and this tournament has a lot of quality so it is normal that we will be under pressure at times as well.

Toby Alderweireld, Atlético defender
It wasn't an easy game but we were very effective. We had two early chances and two goals and we defended very well after that. We played a little bit on the counterattack because they had to take the game to us. We've come away with three very important points.

First we have to create a goal and we have some very good players going forwards; if we score one or two goals, then we can stay back a bit because we have confidence in our defence and the players to hit on the counterattack. That's a game we play well but we also use other strategies.

First we have to reach the next round and then we will take it game by game because if we look too much to the future, we could fall down very quickly. I was down like the rest of the team when we dropped two points in our last league game against Espanyol, but the players said I had a good game and I have a lot of confidence in myself. Now I'm happy that we've won and played very well, myself included.

Arda Turan, Atlético midfielder
The game was really hard because Austria are a really good team with a defensive mentality – like us in some ways – but we played very well in the first half. We scored twice and after that it was a little easier for us because we are really a technical team. We needed the three points because we want first position in the group. This is very important for us for later in the competition.

We play different strategies – sometimes counterattacking football, sometimes offensive football – but we have one mentality: every game is a final. Now our next final is on Sunday against Real Betis. We don't make grand statements. We just take every game as a final, step by step. First, we want first position in the group and afterwards we will see. We believe everything [is possible].

Roman Kienast, Austria Wien forward
We should have played more aggressively, but they are a world-class team, so it is not easy. Atlético scored two goals from two chances. They are really good, but we are as well; we have already proved it. Unfortunately we are missing the necessary luck. In the Champions League, everything has to fit together. We have to keep up the hard work and then we will get better and better.

Florian Mader, Austria Wien midfielder
Atlético have been our toughest opponents so far. We conceded two quick goals; Atlético then showed their class and kept the ball moving. We were unlucky with the volley from Philipp Hosiner [at 2-0], which hit the crossbar. If it had gone in, the game may have been different – but still tough. We have to be wide awake in the future, try to prevent conceding and finally score one in attack. Every game starts at 0-0, so we are still hopeful of a better result.