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Diego Simeone: 'Raul Jimenez left with Atletico Madrid's blessing'

Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone insists that Raul Jimenez, who now represents Benfica, left the Vicente Calderon on good terms last summer.

Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone has firmly denied that Raul Jimenez departed the Spanish outfit in the summer after a bust-up with the management team.

Jimenez, 24, joined Atletico from America in the summer of 2014, but spent just one season at the Vicente Calderon before moving on to Benfica.

It had been claimed that the Mexican international left on bad terms, but Simeone has insisted that is not the case.

"Nothing bad happened with Raul, quite the opposite. I like him as a person and a player. He had to compete with [Fernando] Torres, [Mario] Mandzukic, [Antoine] Griezmann and [Raul] Garcia," Simeone told reporters.

"I'm not surprised he's scoring goals. I'm happy for him, because he's a player who left with good memories."

Atletico will face Benfica in Portugal on Tuesday evening to determine who will top Group C in the Champions League.

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The Chelsea team pose for the cameras prior to kickoff during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16, second leg match between Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain at Stamford Bridge on March 11, 2015
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2Real Madrid18124241182340
3Barcelona19122551222938
4Athletic Bilbao19106329171236
5Villarreal188643430430
6Mallorca199371921-230
7Real Sociedad187471613325
8GironaGirona187472625125
9Real BetisBetis186752122-125
10Osasuna186752327-425
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12Rayo Vallecano185762021-122
13Las PalmasLas Palmas186482327-422
14Sevilla186482027-722
15Leganes184681728-1118
16AlavesAlaves184592130-917
17Getafe183781115-416
18Espanyol1843111630-1415
19Valencia172691626-1012
20Real ValladolidValladolid1833121237-2512


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