Saúl Ñíguez is a veteran at Atlético de Madrid despite being only 25 years old. The midfielder reached in the last Champions match against Lokomotiv the 300 matches as a rojiblanco footballer after making his debut in a Europa League match against Besiktas on March 8, 2012, still as a subsidiary player.
In a club video, Saúl reviewed his moments as a rojiblanco, starting from his arrival at Cadet B in 2008. “It was one of the most beautiful stages. Finding that this was the right place to be for many years. I had companions to have a great time and enjoy football. “The fourth captain of the mattress squad was moved to remember the influence of his brothers, Aaron and Jony.”It was hard not being able to enjoy my brothers, who were footballers and in the end we separated when I was very little. My brothers have always been better than me and competing with them has made me improve. “Jony himself would send him a message to congratulate him on the figure reached.
Saúl also remembered his debut with the first team, with the '48' on his back and with an intrahistory behind. “The previous Sunday I had a great game at Atleti B playing pivot with Simeone watching him and on Thursday he put me on. At the time of debut you don't realize what you're getting. I have to thank Cholo for that opportunity. “Later he would settle in the team after a one-year assignment at Rayo, although Saúl confessed that the idea was to play another year abroad.”In the 2014 preseason, it was talked about leaving, I decided another year, but with my daily work I managed to change the opinion of the coach, I started against Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup and I felt like a participant “.
But, in addition to the good times, Saúl recalled the worst memory of his career, when in 2015 he had to be admitted to Leverkusen for kidney trauma after a knee from Papadopoulos to the kidney that had already been operated on. “It was a very hard moment, I was settling into the starting team and they gave me a blow to the operated kidney that caused me internal and external bleeding. The hardest thing was not the blow, it was seeing my father cry in the ambulance, I told him 'Dad, calm down, I'm a bull' but seeing your father cry for your health … “Something that he would take revenge on a great goal on his return. “Until that moment I had my head in that bad memory, but with the goal I was mentally free.”
Against another German team, Bayern, their most spectacular goal came in the 2016 Champions League semi-finals. The goal against Bayern happens once in a lifetime, I didn't believe it. I thought 'my mother, the one I just rolled', it's a goal that will score me all my life. ” “I will work to return to the National Team” and remembering the 2018 Europa League title, where “it was the most special celebration, more than the title for hearing all the fans chant my name”, Saúl appreciated Torres's figure: “Fernando is my idol and thanks to that stage of his return I can say that he is my friend. It has made it grow a lot. “
Finally, the athletic youth squad spoke of the future: “Our people are greatly missed and I hope they will be with us soon. The 300 games is one more figure, I would like many more to come, I will fight for it“. Saúl missed five games after the previous national team break after suffering muscle discomfort while training in Madrid, but he is fully recovered and after starting against Lokomotiv and Cádiz he already has his mind set on Barcelona.