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After Atlético Madrid were mauled first by Valencia, and then by Barcelona, James Walker-Roberts looks at what is wrong with los Rojiblancos, and why they are not yet a top four side...
Every time Atlético Madrid face off against one of the ‘big’ teams in Spain, optimism and enthusiasm is high in the red-and-white half of Madrid. Declarations are made by the players and coach that yes, they can beat, and be, the best, and that this time, they will not falter. Nevertheless, every time, Atlético Madrid face off against one of the ‘big’ teams in Spain, they do falter, they do lose, and more often than not, they come out of the match with their tails between their legs.
This outcome is becoming more and more familiar with Atlético, and it is a worrying indication of just how far they are behind the ‘big boys’. Sure, Barcelona might be romping away with La Liga, and Atlético might actually only be just two points from fourth spot, but in reality those facts hide the deeper story. The figures that should really concern Atleti are their results so far against the clubs around them, who are also competing for the Champions League places.
Against Sevilla, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Valencia they have picked up a total of zero points, and in the process conceded twelve goals, scoring just three. They might well have picked up an impressive draw at Villarreal too, but the fact El Submarino Amarillo are now out of the top six, means that result doesn’t hold too much water. At the end of the day, the truth is Atlético Madrid have been brutally exposed by the top teams, and worryingly they don’t seem to be learning from their mistakes.
Learning Lessons
Take the match against Valencia last weekend as an example, when they were torn apart from the first minute and eventually beaten 3-1, in spite of the fact Los Che could have had three goals in the first ten minutes. Atlético must have known that their hosts would come at them hard from the off, just like Barcelona, Real Madrid and Sevilla did, and yet they did nothing to counter it. Johnny Heitinga looked like he was still back in the dressing room, and without Maxi Rodríguez and Maniche they looked like a different team.
No doubt that this is one of, if not the, main worry too; squad depth. Atlético have almost no squad depth at the moment, and whilst they have a decent first team, at least in attack, if they are to compete with the best they need decent players on the bench. Luís García, Raúl García, Giourkas Seitaridis, Miguel de las Cuevas and many of the others sitting besides the pitch, are simply not good enough for a team apparently competing for the top four, and potentially silverware.
One hopes that Javier Aguirre, Enrique Cerezo and Gil Marín all took notice last night when a perfect illustration of the power of squad depth was demonstrated, as Barcelona, without many of their first-team players, destroyed Atlético, albeit thanks mainly to Lionel Messi. Both Cerezo and Marín have declared already that the club will not be signing any players this winter, but watching that abject display in the Vicente Calderón, they must surely come to their senses.
Not only do Atlético desperately need a couple of decent full-backs, with the ability to defend, but they also need a few players to step in when the first choice ones are injured. Florent Sinama-Pongolle is almost good enough to act as cover for one of Diego Forlán or Sergio Agüero, but in midfield they have no-one good enough to replace Maxi, Simao or Maniche, and in defence, well, the defence can still get worse, if one can believe that.
Coaching Troubles?
Presumably then, the onus is on Aguirre to tell the Atlético chiefs exactly what he needs, and why he so clearly needs it. Ominously though, the coach could well be part of the problem at the moment, with his tactical decisions being called into question on more than one occasion this season. The fact that Atlético seem so vulnerable from the kick-off every time, the fact that they look so susceptible in defence, the fact that they cannot seem to beat, or even compete with, a decent side, all has to lay, in part at least, at the feet of Aguirre.
Whether or not sacking him is the right thing to do is not clear, only those with inside knowledge of proceedings will know that, but clearly something has to be done, and it has to be done now. New signings are needed, of that there is no doubt, but also a new approach is needed, one that plays to Atlético strengths, but doesn’t also play to their weaknesses, as is happening now. If this team are ever to believe their own hype about competing with the best, the truth is, they need to beat the best, and at the moment, that looks a long way from happening.
Every time Atlético Madrid face off against one of the ‘big’ teams in Spain, optimism and enthusiasm is high in the red-and-white half of Madrid. Declarations are made by the players and coach that yes, they can beat, and be, the best, and that this time, they will not falter. Nevertheless, every time, Atlético Madrid face off against one of the ‘big’ teams in Spain, they do falter, they do lose, and more often than not, they come out of the match with their tails between their legs.
This outcome is becoming more and more familiar with Atlético, and it is a worrying indication of just how far they are behind the ‘big boys’. Sure, Barcelona might be romping away with La Liga, and Atlético might actually only be just two points from fourth spot, but in reality those facts hide the deeper story. The figures that should really concern Atleti are their results so far against the clubs around them, who are also competing for the Champions League places.
Against Sevilla, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Valencia they have picked up a total of zero points, and in the process conceded twelve goals, scoring just three. They might well have picked up an impressive draw at Villarreal too, but the fact El Submarino Amarillo are now out of the top six, means that result doesn’t hold too much water. At the end of the day, the truth is Atlético Madrid have been brutally exposed by the top teams, and worryingly they don’t seem to be learning from their mistakes.
Learning Lessons
Take the match against Valencia last weekend as an example, when they were torn apart from the first minute and eventually beaten 3-1, in spite of the fact Los Che could have had three goals in the first ten minutes. Atlético must have known that their hosts would come at them hard from the off, just like Barcelona, Real Madrid and Sevilla did, and yet they did nothing to counter it. Johnny Heitinga looked like he was still back in the dressing room, and without Maxi Rodríguez and Maniche they looked like a different team.
No doubt that this is one of, if not the, main worry too; squad depth. Atlético have almost no squad depth at the moment, and whilst they have a decent first team, at least in attack, if they are to compete with the best they need decent players on the bench. Luís García, Raúl García, Giourkas Seitaridis, Miguel de las Cuevas and many of the others sitting besides the pitch, are simply not good enough for a team apparently competing for the top four, and potentially silverware.
One hopes that Javier Aguirre, Enrique Cerezo and Gil Marín all took notice last night when a perfect illustration of the power of squad depth was demonstrated, as Barcelona, without many of their first-team players, destroyed Atlético, albeit thanks mainly to Lionel Messi. Both Cerezo and Marín have declared already that the club will not be signing any players this winter, but watching that abject display in the Vicente Calderón, they must surely come to their senses.
Not only do Atlético desperately need a couple of decent full-backs, with the ability to defend, but they also need a few players to step in when the first choice ones are injured. Florent Sinama-Pongolle is almost good enough to act as cover for one of Diego Forlán or Sergio Agüero, but in midfield they have no-one good enough to replace Maxi, Simao or Maniche, and in defence, well, the defence can still get worse, if one can believe that.
Coaching Troubles?
Presumably then, the onus is on Aguirre to tell the Atlético chiefs exactly what he needs, and why he so clearly needs it. Ominously though, the coach could well be part of the problem at the moment, with his tactical decisions being called into question on more than one occasion this season. The fact that Atlético seem so vulnerable from the kick-off every time, the fact that they look so susceptible in defence, the fact that they cannot seem to beat, or even compete with, a decent side, all has to lay, in part at least, at the feet of Aguirre.
Whether or not sacking him is the right thing to do is not clear, only those with inside knowledge of proceedings will know that, but clearly something has to be done, and it has to be done now. New signings are needed, of that there is no doubt, but also a new approach is needed, one that plays to Atlético strengths, but doesn’t also play to their weaknesses, as is happening now. If this team are ever to believe their own hype about competing with the best, the truth is, they need to beat the best, and at the moment, that looks a long way from happening.
