Diego Simeone credited Atletico Madrid B team head coach Fernando Torres for his work with the younger players in the first team.
Atleti defeated Valencia 2-0 on Saturday, with 20-year-old Iker Luque and 18-year-old Miguel Cubo scoring at Estadio de Mestalla.
Atleti have now beaten Valencia in five consecutive LaLiga matches, the first time they have achieved five straight top-flight wins over their opponents in their history.
They have also scored 51 goals against Valencia under Simeone, only scoring more against Sevilla (55) and Real Sociedad (52) during the Argentinian's tenure.
Simeone made 10 changes from their previous LaLiga game, Atleti's most between two league games this season, ahead of their Champions League semi-final second leg against Arsenal on Tuesday.
Those changes did not hinder Atleti, who produced 2.04 xG from 20 shots to Valencia's 1.09 from 12 attempts, none of which were on target.
0 - @atletienglish haven't faced shot on target in first half against Valencia, achieving that for the second time away from home in @LaLigaEN 2025/26, after doing against Levante at Ciutat de València in January. Fortress. pic.twitter.com/fNYtvgmdJq
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) May 2, 2026
Simeone was full of praise for both his younger players and more experienced starters, but made sure to acknowledge Torres after the victory.
"There was Cubo’s quality, I made it clear to him what we need to get the best out of a player like him, and Iker is exactly what we saw," said Simeone.
"These lads are Fernando Torres’s doing, not ours, it’s a reward for Atletico Madrid.
"It doesn’t surprise me. When you’re at Atletico, you have to have these qualities. And if they don’t show up, you have to demand them.
"Against Sevilla we didn’t deserve to lose, against Elche we started well but were let down by the sending-off, and then this one.
"The youngsters responded very well, and so did the experienced players. We need these sort of players."