After a summer season that noticed Atletico Madrid splash the money to the tune of €185 on new signings, the largest spend of any Champions League membership, hopes had been excessive that Diego Simeone now had the instruments at his disposal to be aggressive on all fronts this season.
Nevertheless, with the marketing campaign now two and half months outdated, Atleti already discover themselves 10 factors off the tempo in LaLiga and having misplaced two of their opening three Champions League fixtures.
After Sunday’s 1-0 defeat in opposition to Actual Betis, on a Clasico weekend after they knew they’d have the chance to make up floor on at the very least considered one of Actual Madrid and Barcelona, Atleti have now gained simply two out of eight in all competitions.
These victories had been a fortuitous 1-0 triumph in Vigo and a comeback house win in opposition to newly promoted Leganes. Outcomes haven’t been good and simply as troublingly for anybody related with Atleti, the underlying numbers don’t make for any higher studying.
The worrying numbers behind worrying outcomes
Atleti’s begin to the season was truly not a nasty one. They gained 4 of their opening six and seemed to be rising in confidence with three straight victories by mid September as current foes Athletic had been defeated in Bilbao and RB Leipzig in the end brushed apart within the Champions League, largely due to a cultured show from Antoine Griezmann.
Nevertheless, their efficiency ranges and outcomes have considerably dropped off since then, with worrying points to simply about each considered one of their eight shows for the reason that Leipzig sport.
They’ve saved only one clear sheet since then, with Robin Le Normand an enormous miss in central defence in current weeks, following a nasty head collision within the Madrid derby. Whereas Atleti retain the perfect defensive report in LaLiga, seven targets conceded in Champions League outings in opposition to Benfica and Lille, counsel Le Normand’s return can’t come quickly sufficient.
In fact although, you’ll be able to have a look at nearly each a part of this Atleti staff proper now and see issues. The steadiness isn’t fairly proper in midfield or assault, with common structural and personnel adjustments failing to repair the problem.
In solely two of their final eight video games have Atleti had extra makes an attempt than their opponents. At instances, the distinction has been stark. The shot rely was 19-4 in Benfica’s favour because the Portuguese facet cruised to a 4-0 win within the Champions League. It was 16-4 simply 4 days later in Donostia, as Actual Sociedad did not make their superiority rely in a 1-1 draw.
In the meantime, Sunday’s conflict with Actual Betis noticed the Seville facet, who had been lacking their two most harmful attacking gamers with Isco and Giovani Lo Celso sidelined, muster 24 makes an attempt on aim to Atleti’s 10.
Based on FBref.com, they’ve created extra xG than their opponents in solely three of their final eight matches, popping out second greatest in that metric in opposition to Rayo Vallecano, Celta Vigo, Actual Sociedad and Betis in LaLiga.
Too many adjustments?
With 4 main signings on board, following the additions of Le Normand, in addition to Julian Alvarez, Alexander Sorloth and Conor Gallagher, Atletico Madrid appeared to have the squad depth to assault each LaLiga and an expanded Champions League.
The packed early schedule, notably in Spain with two midweek LaLiga matchdays additionally squeezed into the opening two months of the season, unquestionably offered a dilemma for coaches of the continent’s largest golf equipment.
It didn’t take lengthy for us to get an thought of how Diego Simeone was going to strategy issues. 45 minutes to be exact, with Sorloth unceremoniously hauled off on the break on his return to Estadio de la Ceramica, solely moments after heading in a debut aim.
Whereas Simeone defined the change as a tactical tweak to deliver a special kind of ahead into the sport, it largely set the tone for a season with the Argentine clearly hungry to maintain all of his gamers on their toes and have no person feeling safe as to their place within the beginning eleven.
That may actually be seen as a constructive factor. The logic was comprehensible given an unrelenting schedule that left Atletico Madrid with 15 video games in all competitions earlier than the top of October, in contrast with 13 in the identical interval final season.
It was maybe an try to show rotation, which was at all times going to be needed to a point, into one thing extra resembling pure competitors, with adjustments based mostly on particular person performances and the completely different requirements of every fixture.
The end result although, has usually left Atleti feeling like a disjointed facet with no actual sense of a strongest eleven rising and new signings taking longer to settle than may need been the case had they been afforded extra continuity.
Solely two outfield gamers have began greater than seven of their 11 league fixtures up to now. The common formation adjustments have been simply as hanging with six completely different programs used already in response to FBref.
The distinction to Hansi Flick’s table-topping Barcelona, who’ve confronted the identical variety of matches, couldn’t be higher. Whereas Simeone has opted for adjustments just about each match, Flick has shortly settled on a system and has six gamers who’ve began at the very least 10 of the Catalan membership’s 11 LaLiga video games up to now.
That in fact does increase potential questions on the subject of the chance of burnout later within the season, however Atleti will wrestle to play the lengthy sport with a lot floor already to make up.
Simeone takes the blame
As by far the longest-serving coach within the Spanish prime flight and anyone who has completely remodeled Atletico Madrid’s fortunes as a soccer membership, Diego Simeone is within the uncommon place of not needing to fret about his speedy future, even when outcomes and performances take a severe flip for the more serious, as has been the case in current weeks.
Whereas the endurance of any membership’s hierarchy and fanbase will in the end have its limits, Atletico followers can take solace within the data that there have been intervals like this previously, most notably within the seasons previous to the membership’s final title success in 2020/21.
Behind the closed doorways of the dressing room, he might have sterner phrases for his gamers, however publicly at the very least, Simeone is presently glad to hold the can and take the blame for his facet’s present struggles.
“It’s clear that the beginning of the sport wasn’t good” he stated following the defeat to Betis. “The primary play got here, they scored, they bought going and we couldn’t play the sport we needed. It’s clear that the coach’s preparation for the sport wasn’t good.”
“The coach has not been capable of give the gamers what they wanted for this match” he went on to say. “We ready it in a sure method however we weren’t capable of do it. The coach has an thought, the gamers signify it, however it’s the coach’s fault.”
Atleti at the moment are simply 9 days away from a Champions League journey to PSG the place, based mostly on present kind, they’re prone to slip to a 3rd straight defeat in that competitors.
The brand new format, and a few beneficial remaining fixtures, does imply that dropping within the French capital might not have terminal penalties on the subject of Los Rojiblancos’ future in Europe past the league section, however they’re already quick working out of street in the event that they wish to retain any house of competing for prime spot in LaLiga.
That in fact brings with it a a lot wider debate about what Atletico Madrid’s lifelike expectation ranges ought to be. With comfortably extra sources at their disposal than 17 of the opposite 19 golf equipment in LaLiga, it’s clear they need to be aggressive on the prime finish of the desk, however that’s to not say that ending behind Barcelona or Actual Madrid ought to robotically be seen as a failure.
It’s nonetheless very early days on this marathon 2024/25 marketing campaign, one that will not finish for Atleti till the center of July given their participation within the FIFA Membership World Cup.
Diego Simeone nonetheless has loads of time to search for options and get this staff on track once more.
Primarily based on what we’ve seen over the previous month although, there’s a lot that wants fixing with Atletico Madrid going through much more early roadblocks than would have been anticipated, following their boldest, most formidable summer season in a few years.
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