Atletico Madrid midfielder Gabi says the Europa League is "a load of shit"
The Atletico captain is not keen on dropping out of the Champions League
Chelsea and Roma lead the group and the odds are stacked against Atleti
Tuesday's Champions League results leave Atletico Madrid closer to the Europa League than ever. It's a possibility which doesn't excite captain Gabi, who didn't hold back when he affirmed that "right now I would say that the Europa League is a load of shit, even though it has given me a lot."
Gabi was speaking to beIN after Atletico were held 1-1 by Qarabag. Diego Simeone's side now need to win both their last games against Roma and Chelsea and hope that one of them slip up against Qarabag.
"What hurts most is that we don't have matters in our own hands, that is the cruel reality," Gabi added. "We have to try and beat Roma and hope Qarabag are capable of holding Chelsea. At the moment we are out. We have a chance but it is very remote.
"We're the same players when we win and when we lose, just as the manager, the board, the fans [are the same]... We have to keep working hard and learn from this experience because there's nothing else to do but pick ourselves up.
"We were poor in the first half. In the second half, when we wanted to turn things around, we weren't capable of doing so. But no one has said the word impossible."
