Vrsaljko smiles again. Atlético's right-back played a few minutes against Cardassar, felt like a footballer again and even scored a goal, the third for the rojiblanco team. The Croatian footballer begins to see the end of the tunnel and is already at the disposal of Simeone, who can breathe a sigh of relief. The return of Vrsaljko makes Trippier likely to have competition on the right back. The Englishman has played all LaLiga matches and also in the Champions League. The good news for Simeone is that Ricard, the youth squad who plays for the subsidiary, also played and showed good feelings.
The Atlético player has been marked by injuries for two years. Vrsaljko left on loan in 2018 to Inter, and the Italian team was made with a purchase option on him. He played 12 games between August 8 and December 19, 2018 and he returned to Madrid in January to undergo surgery and recover from a knee injury. But he was about a year recovering and reappeared on January 26, 2020, more than a year after their last meeting.
Between January and March of this year he played seven games and showed a good level. He took part in the historic game against Liverpool at Anfield on March 11. And since then he has not played again. In October he suffered an “arthroscopic resection of the scar plica in the left knee”. His return was scheduled for this month of December and the side hopes that his knee problems will be permanently left behind.
Vrsaljko, 28, has a contract with Atlético until 2022. When he has been without problems Physicists have shown a very good level and participated assiduously in the team. “I need games and an amount of time to catch the competitive rhythms. The mere fact that we are talking about it, and not about pain, knee or muscle strain, already calms me. Soon I will pick up the pace, it has never been a problem for me. But the most important thing is that I feel extraordinary and that after many years, there are no difficulties or pain “.