Club Atlético de Madrid thread.

[Andrés]

Yes i know there was another thread but i couldn't be bothered looking for it.

Info:
Full name: Club Atlético de Madrid
Founded: April 26, 1903
Ground: Vicente Calderón, Madrid, Spain (Capacity: 55,000)
Chairman: Enrique Cerezo
Head Coach: Javier Aguirre

Badge:



Vicente Calderón:



08/09 Home and Away kit:



Squad list:
1. Grégory Coupet
2. Giourkas Seitaridis
3. Antonio López
4. Mariano Pernía
5. Thiago Motta
7. Diego Forlán
8. Raúl García
9. Luis García
10. Sergio Agüero
11. Maxi Rodríguez (Captain)
12. Paulo Assunção
14. Florent Sinama-Pongolle
15. John Heitinga
16. Maniche
18. Tomáš Ujfaluši
19. Miguel
20. Simão
21. Luis Amaranto Perea
22. Pablo Ibáñez
23. Juan Valera
24. Ignacio Camacho
25. Leo Franco
27. Ángel Bernabé
29. César Ortiz
30. Joshua Zapata
31. Rubén Ramos
32. Rubén Pérez
(?). Éver Banega
(?). Sa**** Adams

Key Players:

Sergio "Kun" Agüero


Age: 20
Position: Striker
Number: 10
Atlético player: 2 years
Country: Argentina
International caps (Goals): 26 (13)

Gregory Coupet


Age: 35
Position: Goalkeeper
Number: 1
Atlético player: 0 years
Country: France
International caps (Goals): 34 (0)

Diego Forlan


Age: 29
Position: Striker
Number: 7
Atlético player: 1 year
Country: Uruguay
International caps (Goals): 46 (17)

Antonio Lopez


Age: 26
Position: Left back
Number: 3
Atlético player: 7 years
Country: Spain
International caps (Goals): 16 (1)

Maxi Rodriguez (Captain)


Age: 27
Position: Winger
Number: 11
Atlético player: 3 years
Country: Argentina
International caps (Goals): 24 (7)

Pablo Ibáñez


Age: 27
Position: Centre back
Number: 22
Atlético player: 4 years
Country: Spain
International caps (Goals): 23 (0)

Simão Sabrosa


Age: 28
Position: Winger
Number: 20
Atlético player: 1 year
Country: Portugal
International caps (Goals): 64 (15)

[Andrés]

Cerezo: We Are Building A Great Team

Enrique Cerezo could not hide his delight after Atlético de Madrid secured Éver Banega on a season-long loan and believes that his arrival signals the club's intent to be successful.

Los Colchoneros' president revealed that his club pulled out all the stops to land the Argentinian midfielder from Valencia and believes that he could become a star.

Banega failed to make an impression during his first year at Mestalla after joining from Boca Juniors last summer, but Cerezo is confident that he will prove himself with Atleti.

"He is one of the most promising players in international footbal. He is young and has a real desire to succeed and those are two fundamental virtues to add to our team, the president said.

"Éver possesses and extraordinary quality and we are convinced that he will become a very important player here."

Atlético eased in to the Champions League group stages with a midweek win against Schalke and have been drawn to play Liverpool, PSV and Marseille and Cerzo thinks that his side will prove themselves.

"We are working towards building a great Atlético team. We want to be one of the biggest, like we always were, and now we have the chance to do that," he continued.

"Of course, we are not to spare any effort in signing a player that could be of interest to this club.


Cerezo & Banega

[UsR EXTR3ME]

Nice start.

[ViVaRooney]

Gonna be interesting to watch them in the CL, lets see if they can take it to the next level

they need to be more consistent

[MANU4EVAR]

lol on the flag of Madrid Athletic there is pedobear trying to find children in a tree.

[VillaTillIDie]

Originally Posted by MANU4EVAR

lol on the flag of Madrid Athletic there is pedobear trying to find children in a tree.

Why would anyone think of that.
Good start mate.

[Matieo10]

You already made one Andrew, why another?

[Andrés]

I never made one, Mathew.

A liverpool fan made one about 6 months ago and i couldn't be bothered looking for it.

[Andrés]

La Liga Preview: Atlético Madrid vs Málaga

What: La Liga Primera División - Jornada 1
Who: Atlético Madrid vs. Málaga
When: Sunday, August 31, 2008, 19:00 CET
Where: Vicente Calderon, Madrid

It’s finally arrived. The start of the season is upon us and for newly promoted Málaga it looks as though they have well and truly been thrown in at the deep end. A trip to the Vicente Calderon is rarely an easy fixture, let alone when it is the first game of the season and when the hosts are likely to be in particularly buoyant mood. Their victory over Schalke in mid week secured them a place in the Champions League for the first time in over a decade and they will be in no mood to let Malaga spoil the celebrations come Sunday.

As per usual the team which lines up for Atlético for the start of the season is going to be very different to that which they finished last season with. Wholesale changes have been made first and foremost in defence and also in the midfield where coach Javier Aguirre has bought in some proven talent. All four of Tomas Ujfalusi, John Heitanga, Gregory Coupet and Paulo Assuncao could experience their first taste of La Liga come Sunday night and they will no doubt be eager to impress.

For Málaga it has been a turbulent summer and one which looks as though it might get better later rather than sooner with a couple of tricky matches against Atlético and then Athletic Bilbao. Their main change during the pre-season has been the loss of manager Juan Ramon Muniz to Racing Santander and the arrival of former first team coach Antonio Tapia.

Tapia joins the club just a few years after rescuing them from potential relegation in La Primera and his experience could again be vital in keeping Los Boquerones up this season. Certainly he has been busy in the transfer market over the summer, bringing in ex-players Nacho Perez and Miguel Angel as well as other young talent like Lolo. The only concern is though that they may lack the proven quality to cope with the step up in class.

Sundays encounter is likely to be a real eye opener for Málaga and if they are to get anything from the game it will be vital that they take their chances in front of goal. With Salva believed to be injured for the game the main man entrusted to do that is likely to be Nabil Baha. The Moroccan international was one of the clubs top scorers last season and he will be hoping to get the campaign off to a perfect start by netting against Atlético.

Tapia is likely to set his team out defensively in a bid to frustrate their Champions League opponents and it will be a real test for Atléti, who in pre-season struggled to break down sides. During their tour of Mexico not only did they fail to win a single game but they were humbled by both Puebla and Cruz Azul.

Their solace will come from Wednesday night though and if they can play anything like they did against Schalke they should be a class above Málaga. With Sergio Agüero in the ranks they looked inspired and newly recalled midfielder Maniche showed exactly what the team has been missing in his absence. The duo’s creativity added a totally new dimension to a side which were well and truly beaten in Germany two weeks prior.

FORM GUIDE

Atlético Madrid

5 August - Rayo Vallecano 2 Atlético Madrid 4
13 August – Schalke 1 Atlético Madrid 0 (CL)
18 August – Sporting Gijon 3 Atlético Madrid 3
19 August – Deportivo 2 Atlético Madrid 1
27 August - Atlético Madrid 4 Schalke 0 (CL)

Málaga

6 August – Málaga 1 Athletic Bilbao 3
9 August – Málaga 2 Real Betis 1
15 August – Málaga 1 Recreativo 1
16 August – Málaga 1 Sevilla Atlético 0
23 August – Sevilla 2 Málaga 0

TEAM NEWS

Atlético Madrid

It looks as though Javier Aguirre will have the luxury of picking his strongest XI for this opening encounter but who that includes remains to be seen. The main decision for the coach is likely to be whether or not the back in favour Maniche starts in midfield ahead of Paulo Assuncao.

Against Schalke Maniche demonstrated exactly what Atlético had been missing and it will be interesting to see with all the differences between him and Aguirre now buried, whether he again gets the nod. New signing Ever Banega is likely to start on the bench.

Possible Starting XI (4-4-2): Coupet – Perea, Ujfalusi, Heitanga, Lopez – Maxi Rodriguez, Raul Garcia, Maniche, Simao - Agüero, Forlan

Málaga

Newly appointed manager Antonio Tapia will have just a couple of injury worries for his first competitive game in charge, most notably Rossato in defence and Salva upfront. The striker is battling to be fit for the game but if he isn’t then Tapia will call on Nabil Baha to lead the line instead.

It is unknown yet whether Francesc Arnau or Inaki Goitia will start in goal but it seems likely to be the former with Goitia left on the bench.

Possible Starting XI (4-2-2-1-1): Arnau - Welington, Gamez, Rosario, Nacho – Miguel Angel, Lolo - Calleja, Cheli - Duda – Salva/Baha

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Atlético Madrid

Sergio Agüero –The Argentine lit up the Vicente Calderon in midweek against a much higher class of opposition and there is little doubt that given half the chance he will do the same on Sunday. His incredible turn of pace and mesmerising ball control tormented the Schalke defence and unless Málaga can get to grips with him they will find the game out of sight before long.

Málaga

Duda – There is likely to be a feeling of déjà vu for Duda on Sunday as he turns out for Málaga just two years after leaving them to join Sevilla. The midfielder never really excelled at the Andalucian side but twenty eight first team appearances show that he does have quality. His experience and wing play will be exactly what Málaga need if they are to get anything from this game and he could well be a major player for them this season.

PREDICTION

Despite a poor pre-season Atlético Madrid looked mighty impressive in beating Schalke on Wednesday night and it would be a huge surprise if Málaga took anything away from this encounter. Tapia will take solace knowing that it is unlikely to be games like this which shape the clubs season though, whilst Aguirre will be hoping for a convincing performance to kick start his sides title challenge.

Atlético Madrid 3 – 0 Málaga

[UsR EXTR3ME]

An interesting read.

[Andrés]

I personally think our starting team should be

--------------- Coupet ------------
Heitinga - Ujfalusi - Pablo - A.Lopez
------- Maniche -- Assuncao -------
Simao ----------------------- Maxi
--------- Forlan --- Aguero --------

Bench:
Leo Franco
Perea
Pernia
Banega
Sinama Pongolle
Motta

But i'm sure Aguirre knows better than me.

[Matieo10]

Originally Posted by Rumblerege

But i'm sure Aguirre knows better than me.

Bit of sarcasm there? looks good to me. You got a hero next to judas though, dunno about that

I like the abundance of Spanish players aswell

[Andrés]

Don't you mean an alcoholic?

[Matieo10]

No

[Andrés]

Originally Posted by Matieo10

I like the abundance of Spanish players aswell

I think we might be starting to turn into the Arsenal of Spain .

Not really, we have some really talented Spanish players and some young talent aswell.

[UsR EXTR3ME]

From BBC Sport.

Motta started his career with Spanish giants Barcelona

Portsmouth are hoping to sign Brazilian Thiago Motta from Atletico Madrid - but manager Harry Redknapp is not optimistic the deal will go through.

The 26-year-old midfielder has been training with Pompey and it is understand that his Spanish club would be willing to release him.

"I liked him," said Redknapp. "I think chief executive Peter Storrie has made him a short-term contract offer.

"If you ask me, though, I do get the feeling it is not going to happen."

Motta, who left Barcelona for Atletico last summer, has suffered from a succession of knee injuries and had surgery in February.

He played in a behind-closed-doors friendly for Pompey against Sunderland earlier this week.

And Redknapp added: "He has had a bad knee but if that's all right he's a good player.

"I saw him play against Chelsea two or three years ago for Barcelona and he was fantastic that night in the middle of the park."

Redknapp is keen to boost his squad before the transfer window closes on 1 September.

Pedro Mendes and Sulley Muntari have left the club while Niko Kranjcar is sidelined following an ankle injury - leaving Redknapp without three of his FA Cup Final midfielders.

But the only loan options available to Redknapp are players from outside the Premier League as the Pompey boss has already brought in Chelsea's Ben Sahar and Arsenal's Armand
Traore, filling his allocation of two players from within England.

[Andrés]

I think that would be a good move for Portsmouth, Motta and us. If it happened quick enough it could free up some funds for the Diego deal. It's not like we really need him.

[Zizis]

the win against schalke was great

keep up the good work Atletico

[Matieo10]

That sig is class Rumble! did you do it?

[Andrés]

I did the blur and resizing but it was just a picture on the Atleti website a while ago

[Matieo10]

Looks good, a Sig doesn't need flashy effects or filters to look good...simple is the way to go

[Andrés]

I hate it when you see sigs that are like way too crowded and colours that just completely clash.

[Zizis]

I am hoping Atletcio make spanish champions this year

there is a big chance

[Andrés]

We could do it but that would require allot of luck, realistically i'm hoping to come second.

[Zizis]

do you guys wanna sell Motta?