Simeone has returned from the hiatus with the clear missive of take care of Saúl Níguez's engine. An off-road vehicle capable of enduring miles and miles, but with little preparation before the restart of the championship should be treated with caution. And is that against Valladolid, Saúl missed his first game of the season due to a technical decision, seeing him whole from the bench. Three days earlier, in El Sadar, he had experienced his first substitution in the 84th minute with the game already sentenced.
Until the break due to the health crisis of the coronavirus, Saúl had played 3,420 of Atlético's 3,510 minutes between all competitions (League, Champions, Spanish Super Cup and Copa del Rey), missing only the match against Granada by penalty and playing all other matches with three extensions included (Final of the Spanish Super Cup against Real Madrid, Copa del Rey against Cultural Leonesa and Champions against Liverpool).
It is a patch for Cholo, who at various times during the season has used him in the left side, in the bands and as the main position in the double pivot. Saúl is essential for Atlético, but the good evolution of Manu Sánchez has allowed Simeone to have a replacement for Lodi without having to resort to his wild card in defense, and can afford to rest as he did against Valladolid.
Against Levante he returns to eleven, after having rotated the last 96 minutes of the team. The midfielder himself indicated in AS before resuming the competition that “injuries to me are the greatest fear of all “, noting that “I think it is little time to prepare. For me, the option of the five changes is positive, the dates and the hours will help, but injuries I suppose there will be easily five or six per day “.
Some injuries that, except in the case of Felipe and more slightly in Vitolo, Correa and João Félix During training, Atlético is managing to avoid it based on constant changes in their schemes. At the moment only Oblak and Giménez They have repeated in all the games as starters and the results are accompanying the team, which as Simeone repeats, has its strength in the group.