Atlético will play next Saturday against Barcelona (4:15 pm) being the leader and with the aim of defeating the Barça team and getting half a league title. For all Atlético players, the game is special, but for one of them it also has a different meaning: Mario Hermoso. The Atlético defender knows first-hand what the rivalry with Barcelona is, since he played for Espanyol and he will surely not forget his games against Barça. Hermoso was a starter against Elche on the left side of Atlético and we will have to see the approach made by Simeone to know if he will repeat in the eleven.
Mario Hermoso, 25, has served Atlético this season. He has been a regular in the Cholo onces, either as a center back, with the system of three defenders and two lanes, or as a left-handed side. And he has performed at a good level. He has played 34 official matches (27 in LaLiga, six in the Champions League and one in the Copa del Rey). He has scored two goals, one in the domestic tournament (Real Sociedad) and the other in European competition (Salzburg). And he gave an assist in LaLiga (against Real Betis). He has played 2,710 minutes of competition.
Giménez left with discomfort in the last minutes against Elche and it will be necessary to see if they remit during the next days. The Uruguayan is fixed in the Cholo scheme and will be one of the doubts facing the new league clash. A match that Hermoso will face with great enthusiasm, because surely his past as a Espanyol player weighs on him.
With a contract with Atlético until 2024, the Madrilenian played two seasons in the Catalan team (2017-18 and 2018-19). In the first campaign he played 22 league games with Espanyol and did a bit. In the second he played 32 games and scored three goals. Surely when it comes to jumping onto the Camp Nou pitch, he will remember his past at Espanyol, although his challenge now is to win at the Barça fiefdom and take a giant step to win the championship. In neither of the two league games played with Espanyol at the Camp Nou was he able to score.
In that rivalry with Barcelona, his Real Madrid past can also weigh, because it was formed in the lower categories of Real Madrid. Since he arrived at Atlético he always said that he felt very good in the Wanda Metropolitano entity, so above all he will think about being very focused against Barcelona. A victory would put LaLiga within reach of the Madrid team.