Atletico Madrid looks like the end of the season without silverware, but it has still been a good campaign for Los Colchoneros, who again reinvented themselves under long -term head coach Diego Simeone.
In the course of the 2024-25 campaign, Athleti left the five-back system that was used in the previous campaign, with Simeone setting up on a 4-4-2 so that Marcos Llorente and Giuliano Simeone can thrive. And they had been good in La Liga, the Champions League and the Copa del Rey until the recent defeats all ended their hope in all competitions.
It may not be the season that Athleti wanted, but they still have earned many compliments for their aggressive, difficult to discuss playing style. And a certain supporter is Bayern Munich and the German football legend Philipp Lahm.
In a column for The Guardian, Lahm has discussed the “decline” of Italian football for the past 15 years, and he believes that the blueprint for the elite of Series A to recover from Europe's football has already been mapped in the Metropolitano.
“How can this traditional football nation find its way back to its former glory? It doesn't seem that complicated. Another heavy defeat brings me to this conclusion. We are eliminated in the semi -final of the 2016 Champions League by Atletico Madrid. Our opponents gave 180 minutes of the highest intensity.
“The good news for Italy is that you can still win with defensive football. But slowing down is not the answer; Grandezza alone is no longer enough. You have to add something: power when winning the ball, activity in possession, a non -reinforcing desire to conquer and attack, the Simeone style. You can learn a lot from the passion of this Argentinian coach.