Atletico Madrid: Ranking Best and Worst Players for February
Perhaps a little fatigued, perhaps a touch out of form or perhaps just slightly flat after the high of the Madrid derby, Atletico Madrid endured an odd sort of month in February.
After an extremely gruelling stretch in January, which featured nine games in 29 days, Atleti's schedule lightened in February, with Los Colchoneros only in action on four occasions.
To start the month, the men from the Vicente Calderon recorded an emphatic 4-0 victory over Real Madrid but then lost two of their next three games at the hands of Celta Vigo and Bayer Leverkusen.
With a lighter fixture list that finally allowed them to exhale, Atletico appeared to temporarily lose some of their edge in February.
Across the following slides, we examine and rank the players whose performances were at each end of the spectrum across the last month, starting with those who disappointed.
4. Guilherme Siqueira
1 of 7
When Guilherme Siqueira put in a fine performance in the Madrid derby, it felt as though the Brazilian had turned a corner in his first season at Atletico Madrid.
An attacking full-back, but one with defensive shortcomings, the former Granada defender produced what was easily his finest two-way game against Real Madrid and seemed to indicate he was ready to convince us of his ability in one of Europe's best sides.
But in his very next game, Siqueira regressed and was tormented by Celta Vigo's outstanding Fabian Orellana, who dominated Atletico on their visit to Galicia.
Hardly tested in the routine waltz past Almeria that followed that loss, Siqueira was denied the chance to bounce back from the Celta Vigo game when he left the clash with Bayer Leverkusen in the first half through injury.
3. Fernando Torres
2 of 7
With Atletico Madrid's stint in the Copa del Rey now over, playing time has become a lot harder to come by for Fernando Torres.
Against Real Madrid, Almeria and Bayer Leverkusen, the Spaniard was brought on as a second-half substitute and struggled to impose himself in Atleti's attack.
But it was Diego Simeone's failed experiment of using Torres, Antoine Griezmann and Mario Mandzukic in the same XI against Celta Vigo that really stuck out in February.
As such, the 30-year-old is in an awkward situation: Torres and Mandzukic don't look like a natural pair, and Griezmann is better at playing the roaming role alongside the Croatian.
The honeymoon period of his return is definitely over.
2. Tiago
3 of 7
Like the majority of his team-mates, Tiago excelled in Atletico's thrashing of cross-town rivals Real Madrid to begin February, scoring the opener and controlling the midfield battle with Los Blancos.
However, the rest of the month was something of a struggle for the Portuguese.
When Diego Simeone's men visited Galicia to take on Celta Vigo, the veteran midfielder couldn't help Atleti establish a footing in the game at all and, after enduring a barrage for half an hour, was replaced by Mario Suarez due to what Tom Conn of Inside Spanish Football described as "fatigue."
An improved performance followed against Almeria, but Tiago was then sent off against Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League, effectively ending Atleti's hopes of scoring a second-half equaliser.
1. Gabi
4 of 7
After being Atletico Madrid's outstanding midfielder in 2013-14, Gabi has endured a difficult campaign and was again well below his previously high standards in February.
In Atleti's damaging defeat to Celta Vigo, the club captain was completely overrun by the hosts' midfield, consisting of Augusto Fernandez, Nemanja Radoja and Michael Krohn-Dehli.
Unable to shield his back four effectively and loose with his passing, the 31-year-old's performance contributed to a worrying trend for the team's leader this season.
Against Bayer Leverkusen, he was similarly ineffective and was outclassed by Roger Schmidt's youthful and aggressive central ensemble.
3. Miranda
5 of 7
For the first stretch of this season, Miranda outshone Diego Godin in the centre of Atletico Madrid's back four across the month of February.
In the clash with Real Madrid, the Brazilian made a number of important blocks to stifle Los Blancos' attacking threat before being his side's outstanding defender in an otherwise disappointing performance overall against Celta Vigo—an evening that witnessed an uncharacteristic, subpar display from Godin.
Miranda was also excellent in the Champions League.
In North Rhine-Westphalia, the veteran defender repelled attack after attack from Bayer Leverkusen as his team sat extremely deep and was instrumental in preventing the night from becoming a disaster for Atletico.
2. Mario Mandzukic
6 of 7
In Atletico Madrid's 4-0 rout of Real Madrid, Mario Mandzukic put in one of the most complete centre-forward displays seen all season.
With his strength and aerial ability, the Croatian gave Raphael Varane and Nacho a torrid time at the Vicente Calderon and finished the day with a goal and an assist.
The former Bayern Munich star then repeated that effort when Almeria visited the Spanish capital later in February, taking his goal tally for the season to 20.
Mandzukic also showcased his defensive commitment against Bayer Leverkusen, clearing a shot off the line and regularly getting back to throw his size around at set pieces.
1. Antoine Griezmann
7 of 7
After a difficult start to his time at the Vicente Calderon, Antoine Griezmann has blossomed into the forward Diego Simeone needed following Diego Costa's move to Chelsea.
Having challenged the precocious winger to develop a tenacious, two-way game, Simeone has watched the Frenchman become his most dynamic performer in 2015.
Against Real Madrid, the former Real Sociedad star was everywhere, scoring his team's third goal, regularly testing Iker Casillas and harassing Real Madrid's defenders when possession was lost.
The 23-year-old then netted a brace in a starring performance against Almeria, and in his team's two losses to Celta Vigo and Bayer Leverkusen, he looked Atleti's brightest threat on the break.
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