The season has started well enough for Diego Simeone’s side, but further improvement is required if Atletico Madrid are to successfully defend their La Liga crown. The style and personnel will continue to evolve and this must continue to make progress if the defending champions are to keep pace with their rivals.
At the beginning of the season it was thought that Atletico might be able to capitalise on the uncertainty surrounding the competition after numerous big-money signings were brought in at Real Madrid and Barcelona, not to mention the lengthy absence of Luis Suarez at the Catalan giants.
Things began well with a victory over arch rivals Real Madrid in the Supercopa de Espana, although Coach Simeone hardly seemed to learn from the mistakes of his unruly behaviour in the Champions League final, earning himself an eight-match ban for initially tapping the back of the fourth official’s head before further stepping out of line.
A goalless draw at Rayo Vallecano, the champions’opening fixture at Vicente Calderon, could have been particularly auspicious for the remainder of the campaign. Joao Miranda bagged Atletico’s first goal of the season, after a summer of speculation that had linked the Brazilian with a move away from the Spanish capital.
With new goalkeeper Miguel Angel Moya coming in, retaining Miranda’s services alongside Diego Godin was key business, as the signing of Mario Mandzukic from Bayern Munich, scorer of the second goal in the 2-1 win over Eibar, may also turn out to be.
The Croatian has been tasked with filling the sizeable boots of the departed Diego Costa, and has begun his time in Madrid in keeping with the rest of his career, with a goal ratio of a one every other game having netted six in 12. Mandzukic may be less of an outright target man for Atletico to aim for, but he puts in a greater shift than Costa, and his work rate has been noted by supporters.
Without their inspirational boss on the touchline, Los Rojiblancos travelled to Santiago Bernabeu in a colossal early-season encounter, and managed to exact a measure of revenge for the Lisbon defeat with victory against Real courtesy of a late Arda Turan strike. They were less successful against Valencia at Mestalla however, after a catastrophic start that saw them 3-0 down inside the opening 13 minutes.
That loss is Atleti’s only League defeat so far this season, and with Madrid beating Barcelona at the weekend a hard fought win at Getafe sees Simeone’s men just two points from top. There has been a noticeable difference in style this time round, with Atletico seeing more possession than in previous seasons.
They were previously happy to let the opposition have the ball and profit on the break, but looking down on the rest of the League as champions has meant they face different challenges.
This change in style takes time to adapt to, but it’s been key that minimal ground has been lost after the first quarter of the season. With five clean sheets in nine games, the defence will continue to be relied upon along with the goals of Mandzukic and the expected improvement of Antoine Griezmann.
Atleti now have a reasonably favourable sequence of League games to look forward to, with their next eight fixtures coming at home or against struggling opposition.
After this run will be a trip to Camp Nou, which will be around the halfway point of the season. By then we ought to see how seriously Atletico should be taken as they bid to defend their La Liga crown.
