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Atletico Madrid got their pre-season underway in Singapore with a victory against Arsenal, courtesy penalties. Their next assignment is against Paris Saint-Germain on Monday.
Atletico had a good season last time out by finishing second in La Liga and winning the UEFA Europa League. They were solid throughout the campaign and were the meanest defence in La Liga, conceding only 22 goals in 38 games. They finished 3 points clear of their city rivals Real Madrid.
In Europe they did not enjoy a good Champions League campaign and got knocked out in the group stage. Their 3rd place finish meant that they dropped to the Europa League. They made a good feast of it by winning the title in Lyon against Marseille.
Under the tutelage of Diego Simeone, Atletico have been a hard nut to crack for the ‘big 2’ of Spanish football - Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. In 2014, they broke the duopoly of Real Madrid and Barcelona when they lifted La Liga.
In this article, we look at the possible reasons why Atletico looks primed to repeat their heroics of the 2013-14 season.
#1 Atletico has had a great transfer window
Atletico Madrid has enjoyed a sensational transfer window this time around. Having convinced Griezmann to stay at the Metropolitano, they went out and bought Thomas Lemar, Gelson Martins and Rodrigo.
Lemar is the biggest of the signings they have made. Lemar has been impressive for AS Monaco over the past couple of seasons, and was a part of the World Cup winning French squad as well.
He is technically very good and gets his fair share of assists. In the season gone by, he assisted 10 goals in Ligue 1, while providing 1.8 key passes per game. Lemar will add a technical edge to the Atletico attack.
He would also link-up with his countryman Antoine Griezmann. The Atletico supporters would hope that Lemar hits the ground running, and the Frenchmen can form a formidable duo going forward.
Gelson Martins was one of the hottest properties in Europe. After he terminated his contract with Sporting, there were a host of clubs wanting to take him on board. However, the chance to work with Diego Simeone was too hard for him to resist.
Martins will add a certain level of directness to Atletico’s attack. Diego Costa would be licking his lips at the prospect of having Martins whipping in crosses for him. This partnership has the potential to cause rival defenses all sorts of problems.
However, Atletico’s shrewdest signing of the summer has to be Rodrigo. At 22 years of age, he has a lot of time to develop into a warrior for Atletico in the years to come. In the 2017-18 season, he averaged 2.8 tackles, 2.6 clearances and 1.4 interceptions per game.
To supplement this, he is a composed passer, with him averaging 66.8 passes per game with an accuracy of 90 percent. He has the potential to be the linchpin of Atletico’s midfield.
A midfield triumvirate of Koke, Saul and Rodrigo will be music to the ears of the Atletico supporters.
All stats via transfermarkt
#2 They have kept their core intact
Atletico’s biggest task in the off-season was to keep hold of Antoine Griezmann. He had been linked to all the major clubs in Europe, with Barcelona seemingly leading the race for his signature.
However, Griezmann put all those rumours to bed by pledging his future to Atletico Madrid. In addition to Griezmann, Atletico have done very well to keep hold of the likes of Jan Oblak, Jose Gimenez and Lucas Hernandez.
Jan Oblak is one of the best goalies in the world, and has bailed Atletico out of tricky situations on a number of occasions. Gimenez has slowly started stamping his mark on the footballing world with his robust performances in central defence.
Atletico’s success is built upon its solid defensive foundation. They have a settled defence line with Juanfran, Lucas Hernandez and the Uruguayan duo of Godin and Gimenez.
Up front, they have the enigmatic Diego Costa to call upon. Costa did not do his reputation any harm at the World Cup as he was at his aggressive best. He bullied defenders and got on the score-sheet thrice.
In midfield, Koke and Saul have been mainstays for a couple of seasons, and they are set to continue this trend.
Atletico have maintained the core that brought them success last year. They have the perfect platform to build upon. The stability in their side is what earmarks them as serious contenders to lift the La Liga trophy next season.
#3 Barcelona and Real Madrid are entering a phase of transition
The biggest story of the off-season has been Cristiano Ronaldo packing his bags for Turin to join The Old Lady. Apart from this, Real Madrid has also had to contend with the departure of manager Zinedine Zidane.
Julen Lopetegui was placed at the helm by the Real Madrid hierarchy. However, his time at Real Madrid did not get off to the best of starts. Just hours after being announced as Real Madrid manager, he lost his job as Spain’s manager for the World Cup.
Zidane was highly successful at Real. He won La Liga in 2017, and 3 back to back Champions League titles. All eyes will be on Julen Lopetegui - the former Barcelona player filling the void left by Zidane.
Apart from the managerial aspect, Real Madrid will have to adapt to the idea of playing without their talisman Cristiano Ronaldo. Cristiano scored a staggering 450 goals for Real in 438 appearances.
Los Blancos would want to replace him with someone like Eden Hazard, but getting their hands on him is easier said than done. Real Madrid’s season would be shaped by how well they are able to offset the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Barcelona on the other hand do not have that big a transition to go through, but a transition nonetheless. Andres Iniesta left Barcelona after several trophy laden seasons. They acted quickly and brought Arthur Melo to the club. However, Iniesta’s boots are not that easy to fill. Apart from this, Paulinho also left the club for China.
Barcelona have enough talent in their forward ranks for a sustained title assault, but it is the defence and midfield that is a cause of concern.
While Barcelona have a good starting midfield, they do not have the adequate bench strength. In defense - Pique is not getting any younger, and Vermaelen is very injury-prone. Umtiti has proven himself to be a very astute defender, but if he doesn’t get enough support, Barcelona will be vulnerable.
A new era is about to begin at Barcelona, and they still need a couple of signings to get to their desired levels.
However, there is a level of uncertainty always attached to new signings. It is this transitional phase that puts Atletico Madrid in the driver’s seat to go out and drive their way to glory.
