Last season Diego Simeone repeatedly opined that his side, Atletico Madrid, could not compete with Real Madrid and Barcelona. Then Atletico won the League, claiming a dramatic draw at Camp Nou on the final day of the season.
They certainly could compete and even overcome Spain’s ‘big’ two. Enter the new season, one would have thought that Simeone would opt for a different discourse. But no, he has continued with the same cry and, following his side’s opening day draw away to Rayo Vallecano, it is perhaps slightly more clear as to why.
It is very early days, of course, and things may change completely next weekend. But, on the evidence of what was seen at Vallecas, Atletico are going to find the going tougher this year. And, this is mainly because of one man’s absence – Diego Costa. The Brazilian turned Spanish international was arguably Atleti’s most important player last season. He is a battering-ram of a striker, who throws his weight around and unnerves opposition defences while being at absolute fox in the box. Chelsea fans already are well aware of this. One sensed, as Atleti pushed forward for that elusive goal, Costa was the missing piece.
This is not to say Mario Mandzukic – Costa’s replacement – is not a great striker. He is and he will score goals. It is just that Costa offered that little more edge or bite which on so many occasions last term proved the difference when Atletico had to really rally.
But, Atletico had to sell Costa – the offer was too good to refuse for a club that is much more closer to the likes of Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad than Los Blancos and the Blaugrana when spoken in of in financial terms. And this is where Simeone has a point.
Neither Real Madrid nor Barcelona ever sell their best players – Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are still leading their respective clubs from the front. In addition to keeping their best players, these two clubs only strengthened their ranks with the likes of Toni Kroos and James Rodriguez joining Carlo Ancelotti’s side and Ivan Rakitic and Luis Suarez joining Luis Enrique’s outfit.
After further bolstering their squads, it thus came as no surprise that both Real Madrid and Barcelona took all three points on the opening day.
Ancelotti may not have been entirely convinced with his side’s play – like most watching – yet the sheer wealth of talent that he has at his disposal were more than able to get the win over a courageous Cordoba. Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo scored the goals while Kroos again showed what a great signing he is as he ran proceedings from the centre.
Similarly for Barcelona, it was their golden boy Messi who got on the scoresheet with two strikes either side of a delightful goal from the very young but very promising Munir El Haddadi. And while Suarez is prohibited from playing, it was the other new signing Rakitic who shone, even chipping in with an assist.
Spain’s biggest two clubs really made a statement over the summer as they splashed the cash. Atletico did too, but, at the cost of losing their best player along with Filipe Luis and Thibaut Courtois – easily the best goalkeeper in the Primera Divison last season. Losing such key players does not happen at the Santiago Bernabeu and Nou Camp. But, it does at the Vicente Calderon.
