Dembélé asks for passage before the load of minutes of Luis Suárez

Simeone has been recovering chips in recent games. The constant casualties of Atlético between coronavirus, sanctions and injuries, have weighed down the team, which adds one win, two draws and two losses in the last five games. If Trippier's penalty, how much damage he is doing to the team, ends on Sunday, the six players infected with coronavirus in recent weeks are back.

Carrasco, Hermoso, Lemar or João Félix they had to stop being very important in the Cholo scheme, Herrera had previously dragged a muscle injury … but in Dembélé's case, his loss occurred when he had not directly debuted and began to enter into the plans of the Argentine coach. Arrived on loan from Olympique de Lyon at the winter market, the French had to stop for 12 days due to illness. Now, on his return, he has begun to have participation, although always in the end of the game with the score against. But Dembélé wants to enter the rotation with more and more continuity. And it seems that he is convincing Simeone.

“I liked Dembélé, he can give us important things. He was seen alive, with vitality, energy and we will take it into account among the things that I keep today“, explained Cholo after the defeat against Chelsea, wanting to highlight the role played by his striker in the eight minutes he played in Bucharest. A striker who until now He has played as a complement to Suárez to try to tie the games against Levante and Chelsea, but that can also give a break to the Uruguayan. The ‘9’ has four consecutive games without scoring, something that has caused Messi surpasses him and is positioned as current Pichichi with his double against Elche with 18 points (for Suárez's 16). In the last games he is being seen perhaps with a little less spark, without the freshness of previous games. And it is that, at 34 years old, Suárez has played 1,053 of 1,080 minutes in the last twelve games between the League and the Champions League, all but 27. In 2021 he only rested in the Cup against Cornellà. What's more, Suárez has seen four yellow cards in the League, he is warned and if he sees a card against Villarreal he would miss the derby against Real Madrid.

One goal in three games

Without Suárez so fine in front of goal, the team has been blocked. A single goal in the last three games despite concentrating against Levante 14 shots between the Ciutat de Valencia and 28 the Wanda Metropolitano. More complicated was being able to do something to Chelsea, since the rojiblanco team did not finish any time on goal. And in times of difficulties facing the door, it seems to be the right time to give a scorer a chance. Dembélé has been Olympique Lyonnais' top scorer of the last two seasons with 24 goals in the last and 20 in the previous and begins to ask for passage.

He seems more integrated and physically in tune after overcoming the coronavirus. The '19', which came to replace Costa after his departure in December, It can be a new way for the rojiblanco attack, which in recent games is in need of fresh blood. Dembélé wants to win the club to exercise the purchase option you have for him (€ 33.5M) and for this you need to start counting with minutes and respond with goals.