Atlético faces a decisive month until the next Christmas break, both in LaLiga and in the Champions League. Simeone’s team has six games that can mark its future in this 2021-22 season. In LaLiga he will play against Cádiz, Mallorca, Real Madrid, Seville and Granada, while in the Champions League he will face Porto on December 7, with the urgent need to win if he wants to have options to continue in the competition. It will not be easy, but Atlético has a place to hold on. Nobody is aware that being eliminated in the Champions League would be a hard blow for the rojiblanca entity.
First of all, Atlético have always stuck their heads out in difficult moments. It is not the first time that he has gone through difficulties and he always came out afloat. Last season, without going any further, he experienced difficult moments in the championship, but he passed the bump and reached the final stretch of the championship in a position to take the title. Atlético is also used to playing decisive matches, matches that are practically final. A year ago the pass was also played in the last game of the group stage. Atlético visited the Salzburg fiefdom. It was worth it with a tie. And he ended up winning with goals from Hermoso and Carrasco. He had a bad time, but he met the objective. He qualified, although in the second round he was eliminated by Chelsea.
Atlético will recover João Félix for the Porto match, player that the team needs in the big events. The match on Portuguese soil will be special for the forward, who was unable to play against Osasuna and Milan due to injury. In the Champions League, he usually has good games and Cholo needs all the talent of João Félix to defeat Porto. Your contest seems to be decisive right now. In flat matches like against Milan, he is capable of unbalancing.
Simeone will have to study the way to attack Porto and Marcos Llorente can also be a decisive player in that appointment. Against Milan, the main dangerous plays came when the Madrilenian went on the attack. He played as a right-hander and it will be necessary to see if in Porto Simeone brings him closer to the rival area, where he really hurts. After his injury, Marcos Llorente is already in full condition, although he still needs to be last season’s player.
For Porto Simeone could also give the title in attack to the duple João Félix-Griezmann, just as it happened against Liverpool in the Wanda Metropolitano. And they worked well. They understood each other perfectly and put the defense of the English team in a lot of trouble. That mobility will also be decisive in trying to win in the Porto fiefdom. Luis Suárez could be left to try a final arreón in the final stretch of the meeting.
Cholo needs, and not only for the momentous Champions League clash, Let Lemar regain his level. When he has been well, Atlético has been a dangerous team in attack. The Frenchman has lost that spark he had. Simeone has always been very patient and has given him maximum confidence in bad times. Looking ahead to these next games, having Lemar from before is another of the rojiblanco coach’s goals.