Diego Simeone Must Solve Atletico Madrid's Post-Champions League Form in La Liga
Despite the fact that Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone keeps saying it, no one's really buying it.
"Our goal is [qualifying for] the Champions League, and our rivals for that are Sevilla and Valencia," he said last week, per Goal, insisting his team's objective this season is to finish third in La Liga.
For the Argentinian, in public at least, that's the minimum requirement. Anything else, such as a league crown, is a bonus.
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But here's the thing: Whether or not you're buying Simeone's insistence on the matter, the margins for Atletico this season are extremely fine either way.
In the hunt for the league title, if you still believe that's Atleti's goal, Los Colchoneros sit seven points adrift of Real Madrid.
The room for error? None.
In the hunt for third place (fourth position in La Liga enters the club into the undesirable Champions League play-off round), they sit just three points ahead of a surging Valencia in fourth, who've won five of their last six since mid-January.
The room for error? A touch more than there is in the title race, yes, but hardly enough for comfort.
Thus, right now, it doesn't really matter what Simeone's public and private targets are; Atletico just need to capture points without significant bumps along the way.
And it's how the men from the Vicente Calderon follow up their midweek Champions League encounters that's likely to play a substantial role.
Thus far in 2014-15, Simeone's men have endured a string of torrid results when returning from European duties.
Last September, after a surprising 3-2 defeat in Greece to Olympiakos, Atleti dropped points at home in a 2-2 draw with Celta Vigo. Two weeks later, the defending Spanish champions fought past Juventus 1-0 in the Champions League, only to be blown away by Valencia in the first 15 minutes of their clash at the Mestalla to lose 3-1.
When November arrived, Atletico travelled to Sweden and secured a 2-0 triumph over Malmo FF, yet they returned to La Liga that weekend by slumping to a 2-1 loss to Real Sociedad at the Anoeta.
And the pattern continued in December, as Simeone's players followed up an important draw against Juventus in Turin with 1-0 defeat at home to Villarreal.
| After UCL Games | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | -1 | 33% |
| Not After UCL Games | 18 | 15 | 1 | 2 | +29 | 83% |
Only following the comfortable home wins over Olympiakos and Malmo FF have Atletico triumphed immediately after returning to La Liga from the Champions League. And both, victories over Getafe (1-0) and Deportivo La Coruna (2-0), were among Los Colchoneros' least impressive performances this season.
As you can see, the message here is clear: Simeone's men have often suffered a European hangover this season.
Quickly, they need to locate the multi-vitamins.
Indeed, after their 1-0 loss to Bayer Leverkusen in Germany on Wednesday, Atleti are set to take on Sevilla at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan this weekend—a clash, if you believe Simeone, with one of the club's primary rivals.
On the same day, Valencia host Real Sociedad and Real Madrid meet Villarreal at the Bernabeu. A day earlier, Barcelona travel to relegation-threatened Granada.
Evidently, it's another important weekend. Particularly when you consider that Atletico are returning from an away game in the Champions League—circumstances in La Liga that have seen the Spanish champions take one point from a possible nine this season.
Obviously, more dropped points could prove costly.
Heightening the difficulty of the task for Atleti is Sevilla's home record this season. Twelve games, nine wins, not a single loss and just seven goals conceded—the joint-best defensive record at home.
Though travelling has been troublesome for Unai Emery's side, the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan has proved to be a fortress.
Yet, the significance of the trip to Andalusia goes beyond just this weekend. Dropped points, of any number, against Emery's men would leave Atletico's subsequent clash with Valencia—Simeone is getting his publicly identified rivals back-to-back—at the Vicente Calderon as a straight tussle for the control of third place.
It would also effectively end their title hopes.
Additionally, Atletico's second-leg clash with Bayer Leverkusen is followed by a meeting with a Getafe outfit that, though currently without a manager, per ESPN FC, troubled the capital club last time out. On the same weekend, Valencia travel to struggling Elche.
It's why Simeone must solve his side's post-Champions League form in Spain—why he needs to find a cure for Atletico's European hangovers that have persisted this season.
"Our goal is to finish third," the Argentinian said in January, per Reuters, outlining, just as he did last week, what his team's public objective is.
But whether that's true or not, whether you're buying Simeone's insistence on his target, is largely irrelevant. Title or third, glory in Spain or continued existence in Europe: Whatever the goal, Atletico simply need points without disturbance.
Addressing the club's post-Champions League blues will be key to either outcome.
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