Diego Simeone refused to discuss any potential move to bring Diego Costa to Atletico Madrid and instead called on Angel Correa to make the difference for his side against Las Palmas.
Costa has gone AWOL at Chelsea after Antonio Conte informed the player that he was not in the champions' plans and the Spain international has made no secret of his desire to return to Atleti.
However, Simeone would not be distracted by the ongoing saga ahead of their trip to Gran Canaria in LaLiga, opting not to address the situation when questioned.
"This will be a difficult match," he told a pre-match news conference. "The players in the team are the only ones who will help us against Las Palmas."
Atleti will be without Antoine Griezmann after he was sent off in their draw with Girona on the opening weekend, but Simeone wants Correa, a scorer in that game, to step up and be decisive in the France international's absence.
"[Correa] can be a starter, like everyone who travels," he said. "They are all in the same situation. We are all hoping that he will be ready in time to perform, as always when we have to change the team.
"He changes games and that's something that not all players have. You have to take responsibility and take it one step further. He is a decisive player. I hope he has that consistency in the 90 minutes to be decisive."
Filipe Luis and Kevin Gameiro could both be back in the fold for Atleti, having missed the Girona clash through injury.
"[Filipe Luis] is going to travel - he was training very well," Simeone added. "It takes many days of recovery. We do not know if it will start at the beginning.
"He's an important player for us."
