Atletico Madrid will go into their Champions League clash against Borussia Dortmund next week much more satisfied following their win over Villarreal on Monday night, which moved them back ahead of Athletic Club and back into the top four. They have Saul Niguez to thank.
On several occasions Saul has opened up on his mental health battles and struggles to find his form again. However at La Ceramica, Diego Simeone turned to him again in a moment of need, faith which he repaid in fine fashion.
“Saul is a boy who has always maintained the same spirit to work, he has never complained, he has always maintained humility and respect from the place where he has helped the club and the team,” Simeone told Relevo.
“He has played in many stages of the season, Now perhaps he is playing a little less but I always have his ability in mind because he has it and today he brought out something that we were accustomed to. Saul was a man who scored goals, like Marcos, because we need goals from midfielders.”
🎙 Diego Simeone: "Saúl goal? Everything that is individually good for the footballer is complementary for the team. He came on well, scored a great goal, and hopefully, it gives him the strength to get out of the zone he felt he was in. I've put him on a lot of times because I… pic.twitter.com/lMCCq1CCIA
— Atletico Universe (@atletiuniverse) April 1, 2024
A quality Simeone has been desperately seeking. Antoine Griezmann and Alvaro Morata have sustained their offence this season, but beyond their attacking pair, with Memphis Depay scoring nine, Angel Correa grabbing eight, and six-a-piece for Marcos Llorente and Samuel Lino. It’s been voiced previously that they need more threat from the middle of the park though.
Saul broke a run of 25 games without a shot on target with his placed 88th-minute winner, and bagged his first goal of the season on Monday night. Overall he has 47 goals for Atletico, and it used to be a regular part of his game before recent seasons.
This comes after Saul penned a heartfelt message to Atletico fans, admitting that his form had not been good enough. Simeone described the comments as brave and honest in the aftermath, and on this occasions his faith was not missplaced. In fact, three substitutes linked up for the goal in Correa, Cesar Azpilicueta and Saul.
