The title race in La Liga is heating up but Atletico Madrid have a chance to move six points clear at the top with victory over Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday evening.
There is focus around the role of attacker Joao Felix at the club; now in his second season, he has failed to reach top form in Madrid as his output has remained inconsistent.
Portuguese star Felix netted against Villarreal in the recent league win but that was just his second goal in his last 16 appearances, and he has yet to find his best form at the club.
He was subsequently dropped to the bench for last weekend’s Madrid derby against Real Madrid, as Angel Correa was preferred in attack alongside Luis Suarez.
Atleti boss Diego Simeone discussed him in this week’s pre-match press conference, offering him both advice and encouragement.
In quotes carried by Diario AS, Simeone told reporters on Felix’s absences: “We are a team, not just one player. We need everyone’s contribution, for the team to function as a team so that individuals and talent can excel.
“Without desire, talent is not enough. We seek to have the desire to achieve our goals and the natural talent that all our players have allows us to do that. And João is a very important player for our team and he will surely do very well from here to the end.”
