Julen Lopetegui and Diego Pablo Simeone meet again. It will be the fifth time they meet on the benches. Three draws and one defeat put the Seville coach in the center of the spotlight. After his renewal, the Basque coach wants to get rid of the 'thorn' of beating a Simeone who was the first to get him off the Madrid cloud. Atlético beat the Whites in the European Super Cup in Tallinn 2-4. From there, Lopetegui's team was diluted. A defeat at least painful at the individual and collective level.
Despite trying, Julen has not had the desired revenge against the Argentine strategist. Nor with him Madrid (0-0) in the Bernabeu in the 2018-19 season, nor with Sevilla (1-1) in the Sánchez Pizjuán and a 2-2 in the Metropolitan Wanda.
In the 90s the two met as players. More specifically, it was in 1992 in a Seville-Logroñés. Lopetegui was the goalkeeper and Maradona the star of that team. Precisely, that season was the first for a Simeone who arrived from Pisa at the age of 23. The game was won by the Andalusians (3-0). Although in the next stake, Logroñés did the same with a 2-0 in a great rematch. Then they would also see each other again at the Atleti-Barcelona, where Simeone won four, Loptegui two and they tied one.
Another wish to fulfill
Lopetegui's best gift after his renewal until 2024 would be a victory against Atleti, which would be worth three gold points against a more than direct rival. The Basque coach faces a unique opportunity to vindicate himself in a carat scenario. And the fact is, the LaLiga leader is almost intractable after reaping only one defeat (against Madrid).
A triumphant streak that places him with 38 points at the top of the table with a devastating background of 29 goals made and only six conceded. In this way, Simeone's men are the team that receives the fewest targets in the entire competition.