The story so far
Halfway through the season, Diego Simeone’s Atlético Madrid are sitting impressively as current joint leaders with Barcelona on 35 points after 16 games, two points ahead of city rivals Real Madrid in third. However, it has not been easy for Atléti who have been inconsistent even when winning three points. Notably, the strikers have suffered from poor form in patches throughout the first half of the campaign. Last season’s leading goalscorer Antoine Griezmann has scored eight goals so far, yet has still failed to score against direct rivals competing for the La Liga title as he did in his first season with Atléti. Summer signings Jackson Martínez and Luciano Vietto are yet to meet expectations and are struggling to replicate the form that brought them to Madrid.
This has hurt Atléti on multiple occasions so far this season, notably in losses to Barcelona, Villarreal and the poorest of the lot, Málaga, last weekend. On each occasion, Simeone needed more from his strikers. The same cannot be said for the defenders and Jan Oblak, who have been nothing short of exceptional as consistently shutting down even the best offences in the league. Atléti have the best goals against record in the league, having conceded an incredibly low eight goals so far as well as the most clean sheets. The saying “goals wins you games but defence wins you the leagues” is certainly applicable to Atléti’s season so far.
The manager
The recent headlines have all been about managers of late, with news of José Mourinho’s sacking at Chelsea and the announcement of Pep Guardiola’s Bayern departure at season’s end. The news of these two managers has brought upon much speculation surrounding the 2016-17 Premier League season. One rumour that has continued to grow in light of Mourinho’s sacking is Chelsea’s pursuit of Diego Simeone for next season. The Atléti manager has brought upon a revolution for Los Rojiblancos since his appointment in 2011, winning a host of trophies including the famous triumph of the 2013-14 La Liga season as well as coming within minutes of lifting the Champions League trophy that same season.
This season, Simeone has guided his team to a joint lead of La Liga after 16 matches as well as reaching the round of 16 in the Champions League for a third consecutive season. His fine managerial success and status as one of the finest coaches around has not gone unnoticed and Chelsea seem eager to have the Argentinean take over in London. But in light of the constant rumours, Simeone, when questioned, came out this week and declared his loyalty to Atléti, labelling the Madrid club “family” and “not easy to leave”. Fans will be happy to know Simeone wishes to stay put and loyal to the recent contract extension he signed, keeping him at the Vicente Calderon until 2020. With his side defensively solid, strong in depth and playing well, Simeone has a great opportunity to win silverware this season and is well on track after a successful first half.
Standout player
Jan Oblak is currently the best goalkeeper in La Liga as well as Atléti’s standout player. The Slovenian has been remarkable in goals this season, aiding his side to an impressive nine clean sheets in 16 appearances. The young goalkeeper has been a rock, consistently pulling off save after save when required to keep his side in the game, even when the pressure has been mounting.
Oblak’s fine performances since reclaiming the number one spot may not have drawn the acclaim or recognition La Liga’s most expensive ever gloveman deserves, yet it has not gone completely unnoticed. According to Marca, Manchester United expressed strong interest in bringing the Slovenian to the Premier League in the summer and even offered €35m for his services, a would-be €19m profit for Atléti.
Second half season prediction
It is tough to determine what the second half of the season might hold for Atléti given their strikers’ inconsistency. Their recent performance against Málaga was poor, regardless of Gabi’s red card as the Andalusians constantly threatened from the get-go. Losses such as these cannot be afforded if Atléti hope to replicate their 2013-14 success as joint leaders Barcelona, who have one game in hand on the Madrid side, again look too dominant and are unlikely to drop many points throughout the campaign.
If Simeone could find a way to galvanise Martínez, Vietto and even Fernando Torres and get the goals flowing consistently, this Atléti side is in a good position to win silverware in any of the three competitions they are competing in come the end of the season.
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