DIEGO SIMEONE is known for not holding back on the touchline and it seems his love for the beautiful game extends even to opposition players.

The Atletico Madrid manager saw Lionel Messi deny his side a share of the spoils on Sunday as the Argentine produced a trademark strike in the 86th minute of Barcelona's 1-0 win.

Such was the inevitability of the goal, Simeone could only shrug his shoulders and applaud the brilliance of the now six-time Ballon D'or winner.

Watching the build up to the goal, it was almost as if Simeone knew all to well where the ball would end up as he urged his players to close down Barcelona's star man.

Moments later the Argentine turns on his heels before retreating to the dugout with a knowing nod of the head and clap of his hands.

Social media was quick to pick up on Simeone's reaction to the game defining strike and was full of praise for the class shown by the often fiery 49-year-old.

Twitter user David wrote: "This is a quality and authentic reaction. When you see something, however painful, that is pure magic you can't help but applaud."

While another user, Remy, highlighted the fact this isn't the first time Simeone has been taken aback by the quality of Messi.

She said: "I love Simeone but his reaction to Messi has always been priceless. It is like the time his players were celebrating a goal but he wasn't because he saw Messi warming up (and was proven right)."

Simeone's gracious reaction was made all the more surprising given his Ateltico side's need for a win as they look to get their La Liga campaign back on track.

Atletico sit sixth in the table and are seven points adrift of table toppers Barca after Sunday's defeat in front of their home fans.

The Catalan club, meanwhile, will have taken great heart from their late success especially given Marc-Andre Ter Stegan was forced into a number of smart saves during an evenly contested clash.

Their success at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium kept them level on points with second-place Real Madrid, who they face in El Clasico later this month.

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