Atletico Madrid didn't start this season well. They were losing against Rayo, but they managed to turn the game around. Julian Alvarez shone like a real star. They have Real Madrid derby coming up in three days, they boosted their morale before that game. I don't think they have much chance of challenging for the top two this season but they won't want to give up too early either.
Diego Simeone has been managing this team for years, perhaps it's truly time for a change. This topic has been seriously discussed in recent months. This could really be his last season.
Julian Alvarez was underrated in many years from Manchester City to Argentina teams and I felt very impressive with Julian with his performances in World Cup 2022 for his national team. Before that tournament, Lautaro Martinez was a better striker and more experienced than Julian as he was a key striker in Inter Milan for several seasons while Julian was only a young striker and a substitution in Manchester City. That big tournamnet changed Julian's value and career a lot and even he was given more opportutities, appearances one season after World Cup 2022, he did not satisfy with it and decided to join Atletico Madrid. It's a good decision from Julian as in Atletico Madrid, he has become a star player there and carried more responsibilities as a key player.
Last season they played great and were at the top of La Liga for a while but due to poor performances they could not maintain their top position. This season they have started very badly and have not been able to win matches against weaker opponents. I predicted their defeat in the match with Rayo. Most of the chances are against Atlético Madrid.
They did not begin this season well but match by match, they have recovered from a bad start and now they have only two points less than a fourth position. With Simeone, Atletico Madrid have a very good coach who has managed the club through hardest seasons since his appointment as a head coach there many years ago since
December 2011.Over 14 years, Simeone has marked his impacts on the club and with him, Atletico Madrid can manage to have a very solid position in top four of La Liga while in some seasons they even did better by winning two La Liga titles.