Diego Simeone's Wise Changes Bode Well for Atletico Madrid After Barcelona Draw

Diego Simeone sent out his Atletico Madrid team to frustrate Barcelona on Wednesday, and that is ultimately what they did, although not in the manner that the Argentinian would have expected.

The point gained from the 1-1 draw from the most difficult away game they'll have will have been gratefully received and continued Atletico’s unbeaten start to the season. The manager was left to reflect on the strength of his squad and his decisions in comparison to those of LaLiga's favourites.

From the start, most people knew how this game was going to go, as Simeone once again went out to battle against a team he surely has come to regard as the ultimate enemy.

David Ramos/Getty Images

Deny them space, press the ball as hard as possible and, fairly and where possible, get under the skin of the opposition would have been key elements to his rallying cry. And in the end, he got all that and more.

Angel Correa’s equalising goal, scored within moments of his introduction, was a huge fillip for the Atletico manager and for a squad that has been criticised and looked down upon when compared with their storied rivals.

The 21-year-old forward is quite often seen as a roll of the dice from his manager, who will turn to him from the bench—as he has done in four of Atletico's five Primera Division games this season—when things aren’t quite going to plan.

And they weren’t doing that for just over an hour at the Camp Nou.

JOSEP LAGO/Getty Images

Correa’s introduction at 1-0 down—along with that of Fernando Torres—was one of the catalysts for an improved Atletico display. For that, the manager should take credit, which he looked more than willing to receive when celebrating his side’s equaliser.

The response came after a first half that followed Simeone’s script for all but the final four minutes.

Before that, Atletico were tight and remarkably compact, an approach that was spotted by former Liverpool and England defender Jamie Carragher, who shared a photograph of his television screen via Twitter that sees all 11 visiting players in the final third of the pitch, surrounding the Barca players and giving them no room to move:

In Carragher’s image, you can see Atletico No. 3 Filipe Luis—the player closest to the bottom of the screen—must have been caught upfield, but in his stead Yannick Carrasco has dropped back into the midfield three, and then one of the central midfielders has filled in at left-back.

For newcomers: Welcome to the wonderful world of Atletico.

This is the approach Simeone would have been drilling into his players since the 5-0 win over Sporting Gijon on Saturday, a result that showcased Atleti can attack devastatingly well when the occasion demands it. But they were never likely to play the same way in the cauldron of the Camp Nou.

The main problem with playing in such manner is you leave yourself vulnerable should mistakes occur, and one did in the 41st minute.

Manuel Queimadelos Alonso/Getty Images

At times, you have to appreciate the quality of the individual on the opposing team—and that is particularly evident with Barcelona given all of their star players—so tribute has to be paid to the excellence of the cross from Andres Iniesta, who both weighted and flighted it well, but what followed would have infuriated Simeone.

Ivan Rakitic found space where there shouldn’t have been—especially against a Simeone team—and the Croatian’s simple header threatened to undo all of the visiting team's hard work.

But there stood Simeone on the sidelines, inwardly angry but outwardly calm. He knew he would need doses of luck and good judgement to get back into the game. Fortunately, both arrived.

With Sergio Busquets and then—crucially, and for the home side, drastically—Lionel Messi forced off the pitch, this was suddenly a Barcelona side looking a little forlorn without its heart and their brain.

David Ramos/Getty Images

With no Messi around, a quiet Luis Suarez was suddenly even less threatening. Neymar flickered on the fringes of the match but never quite enlightened it in the glorious manner he’s capable of.

Maybe Barca boss Luis Enrique’s changes—Andre Gomes for Busquets and Arda Turan for Messi—were to blame, especially with talents such as Denis Suarez and Paco Alcacer on the bench, but there was hope for Atletico where hope wasn’t there before, and they utilised a couple of their own changes to seize their opportunity.

Fernando Torres and Correa—players separated by 11 years—quickly combined to level the scores as the Camp Nou was still digesting the Messi news. And the manner of the goal said much about why the pair are such good impact substitutes.

First, the experienced Torres—who by now is playing from the memory of hundreds of football matches, both good and bad—showed intelligently for the ball from a free-kick, then turned it around the corner of the otherwise excellent Gerard Pique and into the path of Correa.

From there, the young Argentinian showed just why his club and manager rate him so highly, taking on the ball and the responsibility before an unerring finish into the net off the left-hand post.

A deserved equaliser? In Simeone’s world, goals are often strived for and chiseled out rather than arriving as a consequence of any great groundswell of pressure, but Atletico deserved to be level for yet another demonstration of their battling qualities.

JOSEP LAGO/Getty Images

It would have been even better for them but for Marc-Andre ter Stegen turning Diego Godin’s late header over the top of the crossbar in the closing stages. But that would have been greedy.

The draw will have been welcomed, though, and celebrated by a manager who looks as though he’s got his mojo back after a disappointing start to the season that saw his caution outweigh his curiosity in the frustrating draws with Alaves and Leganes.

This game only yielded one point too, but the difference in the perception of the results will also be seen in the perception of Simeone.

Here he was the brave, proactive and reactive manager, taking off Kevin Gameiro and Saul Niguez and sending on Torres and Correa, a move that pushed Antoine Griezmann back into the sort of deeper position Messi had been operating in for Barca before his withdrawal.

He wasn’t great there, but then the star at Atletico is always the team, and so it proved when two of the understudies combined to score their goal.

As it flashed in off the post, there was a smile from Simeone—and that famous glint in his eye was back.

This result could end up being important.