“We cannot look back or too far ahead,” Diego Simeone said Thursday afternoon. “We are in a transition year, as we’ve said. Many were surprised, but we’re still looking to achieve the club’s objective.
“Hopefully we can keep it up and finish as high as possible.”
The Atlético Madrid coach’s optimism has been reinforced by his side’s strong showing since LaLiga resumed last month. The mattress makers have picked up 14 of a possible 18 points to move into third place and distance themselves from the Europa League places. The team has also rung up a 13-game unbeaten streak since a loss to Real Madrid on Feb. 1.
But Simeone knows the job is not done yet. Mallorca’s arrival kicks off a stretch of three straight games against teams placed 13th or lower in the table. Vicente Moreno’s side pounded Celta Vigo 5-1 earlier this week but are still five points adrift of safety with five games left — and even a draw at A Stadium Called Wanda might not be good enough to prevent a drop back down to Segunda.
SPAIN: LaLiga
Atl. Madrid vs Mallorca
Over 2.5 Goals
Total Odds: 2.20
