Atletico Madrid captain Koke has confessed that it would be “very painful” if his side failed to win the title in La Liga this season.
Atleti collected a whopping 50 points from their opening 19 games of the season – putting them on a trajectory to reach 100 points over the course of an entire campaign.
However, the form of Diego Simeone’s side has fallen away in recent weeks and they have picked up just 16 points in the nine league outings since – dropping to below a rate of two points per game.
That means that their rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid have both made up plenty of ground in the title race, and those two sides now trail Atleti by just four and six points respectively.
With just 10 rounds of matches remaining in the campaign, the pressure has been ramped up on Los Rojiblancos in the closing months.
Captain Koke told reporters, as per El Mundo Deportivo: “We all know that leagues are won at the end of the season. We know that things were going to adjust, we do not have to get out of our philosophy.
“We do not have to think if we are favourites or not, people see you that way because of the points you have. Barça and Madrid, who are among the best teams in the world, will fight to the end just like us.
“Losing La Liga title would be very painful for everyone. The effort we have made this season…we have gone through casualties due to injuries and Covid, perhaps that is why it is costing us more now.
“It would be a shame not to reach that goal, but I don’t think about it because right now I think about the national team.”
