Why France Recognition Can Be the Making of Atletico Madrid's Kevin Gameiro

Elite football has long since become a game of characters, almost as though who you are off the pitch means more than how you play on it.

The best players and managers all have distinctive personalities, with their profiles promoted in a way that gives supporters an insight into their lives and, as such, makes them feel closer to their clubs.

Big-money signings or new contracts are being announced in increasingly daring ways in order to pander to those supporters via social media, almost giving the impression that just having this player in their lives is a trophy in itself. It is something to be celebrated.

And you can rest assured that Atletico Madrid would have milked the re-signing of Diego Costa in the summer, had they pulled it off.

The player himself wanted the move, per Rik Sharma of MailOnline, while manager Diego Simeone wanted to bring back a forward he’d lost to Chelsea two years ago, according to Alex Bywater in the same media outlet.

And you can imagine how it would have gone, can’t you?

A menacing Costa would have been staring back at you from Atletico’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram profiles, his trademark snarl and aggressive demeanour being gloried in by fans who saw him as their raging bull who stampeded all the way to the Liga title in 2014.

It could still happen one day, of course.

At Chelsea, Costa has furthered that reputation as a highly effective bad boy.

He won the league in his first season, and after a personal and collective dip in his second term, he’s begun the current Premier League campaign in good form for Antonio Conte.

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Should he return to Atletico one day, then the club will be milking it for all it’s worth due to his profile as one of the best at doing what he does.

For now, though, there’s Kevin Gameiro, who was signed from Sevilla in the summer when it became clear that the Costa move was a no-go. And the Frenchman doesn’t exactly come with a similar profile to the Spain international.

Whereas Costa glares out at you from his latest endorsement and would guarantee the sale of several replica shirts, Gameiro arrived as a player not even instantly recognisable among world football fans.

He was that forward for Sevilla, the one who was oddly effective in their Europa League campaign, and before that he was largely seen coming off the bench at Paris Saint-Germain as two more marketable forces—Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani—took the limelight.

And if Gameiro’s summer arrival might have seemed like a letdown to some Atleti followers who had longed for the return of Costa, then at least the forward was aware of that.

Per ESPN FC, he said on his arrival at the club: “The most important thing is that I am the one here speaking in front of you [and not Costa]. The club chose me and I am going to give them everything I have.”

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And he’s done that so far.

Short of turning up in a Costa mask, stamping on passers-by and arguing with everyone within earshot, he has filled the hole created by the expected return of the Spain international with aplomb.

There has been the odd teething problem during his bedding-in process, but goals on his first two appearances at the Vicente Calderon Stadium—a penalty against Alaves and a fine strike against Sporting Gijon—as well as the clinching goal in the win at Valencia before the international break makes for a decent start.

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And it would prove to be a memorable international break for the 29-year-old, who—thanks in part to the elevated status that his Atletico move has brought him—is back in the France squad for the first time since 2011.

Then he’d come off the back of a successful couple of years with FC Lorient that had earned him his move to PSG. However, the pressures of Paris were already enough to deal with without adding international expectations to that, and he soon faded from view—playing eight matches and scoring one goal, in a friendly against Ukraine.

Now, thanks in part to the partnership he is striking up with France’s golden boy Antoine Griezmann at Atletico, he has once again caught the eye of national coach Didier Deschamps, who called him into his squad for the previous international break and then this one, in which he started both matches. 

Gameiro did well, too. Taking advantage of the injury to Arsenal’s Olivier Giroud, he scored twice in Paris on Friday as the French came from a goal down to beat Bulgaria 4-1 in their World Cup qualifier.

Linking well with Griezmann—who also scored—Gameiro was able to show his penalty-area prowess by getting on the end of two fine crosses into the centre to convert from close range, bringing a goal-poaching air to the team that Giroud has never quite consistently been able to produce.

His double strike then earned him a start in the qualifier with the Netherlands in Amsterdam on Monday.

Although he didn’t score, he did test goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg with two good efforts as his willing running helped set the tone for a 1-0 French victory, achieved courtesy of a powerful Paul Pogba drive from distance.

Like against Bulgaria, Gameiro was replaced by Andre-Pierre Gignac late on having almost run himself into the ground.

With the likes of Fernando Torres and Angel Correa usually available from the bench, leaving the field before the end of the game has become a regular thing for the 29-year-old at Atletico, where he has been substituted in four of the six games he’s started so far this season.

Starting the game from the bench has also become a not uncommon occurrence, and it is that flexible nature and team ethic that will have endeared him to Simeone since his arrival at the club.

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He might not be Costa, but his increasing involvement with his national team is raising his profile, and that can only serve him well in what he hopes to achieve at the club.

At his age, and with Costa perhaps inevitably returning to the Spanish capital one day, it could well be that Gameiro isn’t at Atletico for a long time—just a good one.

As a new national hero, and with his club-mate by his side on international duty, the pieces could just be falling into place for a player who more people across the world will be starting to recognise.

Gameiro will carry on working hard for the cause, even if his shirt won’t sell as many as Costa’s could have done, or his image won’t get as many Instagram likes.

He’ll just carry on scoring goals for club and country—something that is sure to satisfy fans of both Atletico Madrid and France.