Welcome to this month’s edition of Atlético Madrid Club News, bringing you up to date with everything going on across all aspects of the rojiblanco establishment.
In this edition, find out what potential sanction Diego Simeone could face following his blow-up at Anfield, and why Atlético Femenino are giving reason to believe that this could be their year.
We also take a look at the recent milestones reached by Jan Oblak and Antoine Griezmann, and lots more!
Simeone in trouble
He has since tried to explain why he reacted
in such a way, but El Cholo is most certainly about to receive his medicine for a quite bizarre crash-out toward a Liverpool fan following Virgil Van Dijk’s winner at Afield on Wednesday night.
“When they insult you the whole 90 minutes and then you turn after the opposition’s goal and they’re still insulting you, it’s not so easy,” Simeone said.
Unfortunately, it is unlikely that sentiment will hold up in a UEFA court of law, as one former LaLiga referee hints at what could fall Simeone’s way.
Eduardo Iturralde González, who refereed in Spain between 1995 and 2012, these days finds himself on the desk at various radio stations. Last night, when speaking to El Larguero of Cadena SER, he laid down what he believes to be the minimum punishment that UEFA will serve.
Iturralde González believes that Simeone will have a one-game ban that could be increased if he’s found to have acted with excessive aggression, but that it could be put on “standby”. That means Simeone won’t have to serve the suspension immediately, but that it could hang over him throughout the course of the season, potentially coming back to bite him in an important moment.
Economically, Iturralde González mentioned that the minimum El Cholo will have to fork out of his own pocket is €20,000, with that figure rising should UEFA judge his behaviour to be more severe than the norm.
That is an expensive reaction toward a fan who, quite frankly, didn’t deserve the Argentine manager’s presence given what has come to light about him. Inflammatory British “newspaper” The Daily Mail alleges that Johnny Poulter (the man who decided to focus his energy on insulting Simeone over celebrating his team’s last minute winner) has previously been banned from football for three years over an incident involving a disabled supporter at Steven Gerrard’s farewell match at Anfield.
Poulter has since recorded a comic video in his car claiming that an Atlético Madrid staff member spat towards him, which some outlets are claiming that UEFA are also investigating.
All in all, a messy situation that the tabloids both in the UK and Spain are lapping up, and one which will ultimately fall unkindly on Simeone — while doing absolutely no good in repairing his already-bleak reputation among Champions League viewers.
Femenino off to flying start
When we previewed Atlético Madrid Femenino’s season ahead, the same obstacles that lay in the way of breaking the Barcelona-Real Madrid duopoly were as present as ever.
However, with three wins out of three in the league and a Champions League play-off success looking possible, there is reason to believe that the women are mounting a serious silverware challenge this year.
Not only have the three Liga F victories amounted to an 11-1 goal difference, but one of them came in the Madrid derby. The match winner that day was 22-year-old Luany, who won the Copa America with Brazil this summer and is becoming a decisive figure in this Atleti team. She has now netted in all four of the team’s matches this season, including the opener away to BK Haecken in the Champions League play-offs.
That first leg finished all square at 1-1, and the second leg will be played on Thursday at the training complex in Alcalá de Henares, where Atlético Madrid have a mini stadium set up for their women’s team. If the first match was anything to go by, Víctor Martín’s side will be confident they can get over the line, given the amount of chances they were unable to convert. The Swedish opposition grabbed an equaliser in the 86th minute which has left the tie in the balance.
Should they progress, Atlético will enter the league phase of the competition, where they could come up against European heavyweights such as Wolfsburg, Lyon or Chelsea.
Madrileño following familiar path
Fernando Torres’ Atlético Madrileño side seem to be mimicking their senior side when it has come to how they have started this season.
After three matches, the boys have just two points following a couple of draws and a loss, which leaves them in the relegation zone.
A 0-0 draw to Atlético Sanluqueño opened the campaign before an away trip to Cartagena resulted in a 3-2 loss, with Madrileño blowing a first-half lead. In the last game at home to Real Murcia, starlet right-back Javi Boñar rescued a 1-1 draw in the 99th minute, showing how the team’s fighting spirit from last season has translated into this campaign.
Next up, they face fellow strugglers Betis Deportivo (Real Betis B) on Saturday, and should the imitation of the Atleti senior side continue, they should finally be able to post up a win on the board.
Elsewhere in the academy, the Juvenil A side that Torres previously managed made their debut in this season’s UEFA Youth League this week. The U19s played out a respectable 0-0 draw away to Liverpool, in what will be a format that will follow the senior Champions League league phase in terms of both fixtures and dates.
Center-back Jorge Domínguez made his Youth League debut at just 15 years of age; he is certainly one to watch in the months and years ahead.
Oblak and Griezmann hit milestones
Super Jan Oblak, Atlético Madrid’s third-highest appearance maker ever, played his 500th(!) match for the club at Anfield on Wednesday night.
It’s a milestone that should not slip under the radar considering only Adelardo Rodríguez and Koke have played more. Only twice in the 122-year history of the club have we had the chance to celebrate a player reaching 500 games played. Simply astonishing.
In the same match, Antoine Griezmann played his 450th match, edging him closer to Carlos Aguilera in seventh spot on the all-time rankings, and just 19 behind Ángel Correa in sixth.
Should Griezmann continue to play an important role for the team this season, he could even surpass Tomás Reñones in fourth and situate himself behind Oblak in the appearances table.
