Atletico Madrid managed to win the La Liga title last season and they had an impressive transfer window the summer.
The defending champions managed to bring in a quality midfielder like Rodrigo de Paul and they also strengthened their attack with the signing of Antoine Griezmann from Barcelona.
Diego Simeone‘s men were expected to win the league title at a canter this season especially with the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona riddled with the old guard.
Both clubs are lacking in depth right now and Atletico undoubtedly have the best squad on paper.
However, Atletico’s start to the season has been far from perfect.
With just three wins in five league games and a draw against Porto in the Champions League, one has to wonder whether Atletico Madrid have gone off the boil.
It seems that the wealth of options at their disposal has had a negative impact on their performances so far.
Too many cooks spoil the broth and that certainly seems to be the case with the defending Spanish champions right now.
However, there is no doubt that they have the quality to turn things around.
It remains to be seen whether Diego Simeone can rally his troops and get them firing on all cylinders again.
Defending titles have often proven to be harder than winning them and the Atletico Madrid players will have to show that they have the mental fortitude to get the job done this season.
They cannot afford to lose their calm during crucial stages of matches if they want to end the season successfully.
One such example of their players losing their heads is the sending off of Joao Felix against Athletic Bilbao.
The Portuguese international picked up two yellow cards in a span of 20 seconds with just 10 minutes left on the clock against Bilbao and it could have ended up costing Atletico Madrid dearly.
Felix was awarded a yellow card for elbowing an opponent and the player forced the referee to book him again with his confrontational attitude.
Simeone will be thoroughly disappointed with the lack of maturity shown by the young attacker and he will have to get his house in order soon if Atletico Madrid are to challenge the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona for the league title once again.
