Atletico Madrid’s poor 2021/22 campaign has underlined the importance Jose Maria Gimenez holds for the team. The Spanish side are a weaker outfit without the Uruguayan at the heart of their defence.
That’s according to Marca, who claim that at his best Gimenez is one of the finest centre-backs in Europe. According to one study they cite, he’s the safest defender of the 21st Century – his team concedes 0.74 goals per game when he’s on the pitch, the best numbers of any other defender this century including Giorgio Chiellini (0.83), Paolo Maldini (0.84) and Carles Puyol (0.85).
Gimenez arrived at Atletico in 2013 at the tender age of 18. 247 games and five titles later, he’s just as much a product of the club’s youth system as Koke or Saul. He’s one of the team’s captains and a fundamental part of Diego Simeone’s system. He’s been on the record as saying he wants to stay at Atletico forever.
