Diego Simeone will be laser on La Liga this month while looking forward to haunting Real Madrid.
Los RojiBlancos finished fifth in the new UEFA Champions League format with Simeone's charges that are the last 16 relaxed.
A 4-1 win away from RB Salzburg insured no last minute nerves and there is no need for a dangerous play-off for Simeone in the coming weeks.
Rivals Real Madrid fells with the holders in the new Play -Offs against old enemies Manchester City in a huge confrontation to make progress in the knockouts.
Without European matches until the last 16 starts on March 4, Simeone has a month to chip away from the current four-point tail leader of Real Madrid and progress to the Semi Finals of Copa del Rey.
Simeone will lead his team through the capital next weekend, where the defeat in the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu could spell the end of their title hopes, but a victory or a draw keeps the fight alive.
When Real Madrid is progressing past the city, Simeone's Atletico Madrid and Bundesliga champion Bayer Leverkusen are the two options, which can mean a 'double derby' in the space of less than a month.
The prospect of several meetings is not a concern for Simeone, because the Argentinian seems to use this window to pick up competition points.
“We are focused on tomorrow's game [vs. Mallorca]We don't think about anything else. It is an important game against a heavy opponent, “according to quotes from Marca.
'[The new Champions League] Forces you to constantly think about winning. We went to the last few minutes, waiting to see if there was a goal or not, and how the teams would position themselves.
“We don't know who we're going to play, it doesn't make sense to think about anything other than Mallorca.”
Simeone took a late 1-1 draw at Real Madrid in League Action in September, but they have only won one Champions League match against them in addition to two last defeats under his leadership.
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