Simeone’s changes flip the tides of the wing
On the day of the Three Kings, two of Spain’s footballing kings faced each other at the Sanchez Pizjuan. Atletico Madrid traveled to Seville in hope of bettering their away record of 2 wins, a loss and 5 draws. A win for Sevilla meanwhile would see them overtake Diego Simeone’s side as both teams pursue Barcelona.
An unfit Simon Kjaer meant that the Frenchman Joris Gnagnon had the opportunity to start his 2nd game of the season. Sevilla’s bench was also degraded by the suspension of Franco Vazquez and Gabriel Mercado. For Atleti, the injuries of Felipe Luis and Lucas Hernandez exterminated their options at left back and Simeone had to find an unorthodox solution. Saul Niguez was the solution as he slotted in the left back position.
Both teams started in their usual setup, 3–5–2 for Sevilla and a 4–4–2 for Atleti. Juan Angel Correa started next to Antoine Griezmann in place of the injured Diego Costa. Atleti’s midfield positioning was quite interesting as Thomas Partey played on the right wing with Koke in central midfield. Partey’s role was to mark Sergio Escudero, the left wing back who is the main attacking hub for Sevilla on the left side. As for Koke, he was given the duty of marking Ever Banega. Koke pressed Banega when he offered himself as a passing option or when Sevilla’s defence passed the ball to the Argentine. The result was a disruption of Sevilla’s build up
Sevilla’s way around this was direct balls fed into Jesus Navas on the right side. Koke’s movement to mark Banega left spaces in Atleti’s midfield and Thomas Lemar was left with the dilemma of sticking wide to mark Navas or keep the midfield line compact so that Pablo Sarabia won’t drop to occupy this space. He did neither. Therefore, Navas had the time and space to control the ball easily and thrust forward to attack Saul in a 1 v 1 situation. Navas cruised on the right side providing crosses after crosses. The first chance from the one man ‘Navas brigade’ came in the fourteenth minute when his cross was met by Roque Mesa’s shot. It went wide but it was an indication of what will follow.
The next attack saw Navas beating Lemar then Saul, but Escudero headed his cross wide. The advantage Navas had over Saul was so significant that Sevilla had a corner from the left side but they decided to rotate the ball so it would reach Navas. He combined with Andre Silva then put in a low cross which Daniel Carrico deflected into Wessam Ben Yedder’s path. The clinical striker put it past Jan Oblak to give Pablo Machin’s side the lead. 1–0 Sevilla
Navas mesmerized Saul to the extent that Saul pushed forward out of his position to close the distance between him and Navas. The space Saul vacated was invaded by Ben Yedder, and he came close to double the lead from that space only for Oblak to stop him. Sevilla’s right handed wing play gave them the upper hand in the first half, and Atleti’s scheme for ball progression made it easier for Sevilla to retrieve the ball. Atletico focused on long balls towards the center which Gnagnon, Carrico, and Sergi Gomez reacted to brilliantly, winning most of the aerial duels and 2nd balls. Despite Sevilla’s dominance, all their hard work was negated by an exquisite free kick from Griezmann. His shot went over the wall and into the back of the net to make the score 1–1 as the referee whistled for half time.
At half time Simeone moved his midfielders around to try and neutralize Navas. Lemar who failed to support Saul in the first half was moved to support Griezmann upfront. Correa now on the right wing to stop Escudero, Partey next to Rodrigo, and Koke on the left side. This musical chairs process had a purpose and it was to stop Navas. Koke doubled with Saul against Navas to limit his crosses and restrict the winger. Koke also enabled Saul as he dropped back into the left back position to cover when Saul pushed forward. This came in handy also in terms of ball progression as Atletico focused their long balls towards the left side where they now had a height advantage versus Navas.
Koke’s defensive duties gave Saul the license to attack, and in the second minute in the second half he struck from the left side of the penalty box. His shot was saved by Tomas Vaclik though. Twenty minutes later, he snuck into midfield untracked but blasted a shot out wide. Saul was Atletico’s free man in attack and all what he needed was a goal to reap the rewards of Simeone’s substitution. His last chance came from a header but Vaclik saved it comfortably.
Navas managed to break the chains once. His cross created Sevilla’s most dangerous chance in the second half as the ball fell for Ben Yedder in the box. His shot skinned the outer part of the post to keep the score at 1–1. As the game was coming to an end, Griezmann thought he had the last hurrah. In a moment of confusion in Sevilla’s defence, the Frenchman found himself alone against Vaclik. The Czech goalkeeper managed once again to save Sevilla as he reacted quickly to Griezmann’s low shot. Further scrabbles for both sides didn’t amend the score, and the draw wasn’t beneficial to either of the teams.
In a lively game of two halves it was the keepers, Oblak and Vaclik, who shone the most. Their skill set faced a hard examination on the day, but both brought their A game. 1 v 1 situations, great positioning, and splendid saves highlighted their face off.
Simeone’s changes dictated the second half while Navas’ pace and crosses ruled the first, but Barcelona were the real winners as they extended the gap at the top of the table after beating Getafe.
