That’s why AS interviewed a couple of Atlético supporter groups and asked them to release a statement with their opinion on what’s going wrong with the team. This interview was done before the Copa del Rey return leg against Barcelona.

Here’s what they say, translated from Spanish:

Flor de Entrevias. “This team isn’t done pushing forward”

This team isn’t done pushing forward. However, this Atlético is limited, the roster is short, there’s only about eleven or twelve good players, but the rest are average players. The team hasn’t played good football and it doesn’t have any substance. They can only hope that one of the teams on top can choke so they can land a Champions League spot. Hopefully they do so we can take advantage of them. But very soon, Atlético will hit another “Everest” when it plays with the top teams again. The matchup against Porto is very close and if we play a good team, there’s the chance of going through. But even when there’s no injuries, the teams performance can still be bad.

Peña Ciudad Real. “Aguirre can squeeze more out of this roster”

Aguirre doesn’t control the squad well. Where’s Miguel? And Camacho? He can get more out of these players, and get more out of their talent than how he’s doing so right now. The lineup is always the same, and so are the substitutes. Also, Aguirre’s teams always do bad in second halves, where the schedule is worse than in the first. Yes, we did have a string of good results, but nothing more. It’s going to be difficult to get into the top 4 of the league. Europe, without a doubt, is much more different and there’s the chance to eliminate Porto and continue in the competition. The one thing that doesn’t fail in this club is the fan support, who will always be with this team.

Peña El Glorioso. “Aguirre isn’t an Atletico-level manager”

It’s clear that Javier Aguirre isn’t a manager at the level of Atlético. The roster is short, but it should function much better than it already is. Going through to the next round in the Copa is impossible for Atletico (Al’s note: how right you were…). The best possible thing to do is to give those with little playing time a chance because there’s nothing else to do. The cup was thrown away at the Calderon. We’re more optomistic in the Champions League. In this competition, it somewhat feels like a fluke. Atlético has an even matchup with Porto, but we can advance. For many players, the Liga title has become harder to obtain and this isn’t anything positive. In the league, the team can only end up in the top spots if the other teams slip in the second half of the league. These spots will be fought for, but much improvement must be done for the team to get there.

Peña Tomahawk. “There’s a good starting XI, but there aren’t good spare players”

Atlético isn’t doing bad, since we’re still in the top part of the league, but there isn’t a manager that knows how to play good football and it doesn’t have a big enough roster to aspire to big challenges. The problems arrive with injuries. Atlético has a good starting eleven, but the rest of the team isn’t too good. It also seems like there’s not a good vibe within the team. Aguirre isn’t a bad manager, for teams that are used to average results, but not for teams who must be winning from the start. It’s best that if we don’t try too hard for the return leg of the Copa. In the Champions, we’re better off. The team has done well so far in the competition and the players are ready to make a good run. The best for the team would be to make the League an unimpossible task. The most positive you can be is to win match after match. Atlético must go for the victory in all matches.

Peña Pozuelo. “Two faces: bad in the League and good in the Champions”

Atlético has shown two faces this season. In the league, they haven’t been at the best level and in the Champions they’ve shown their true colors. You can’t say anything about Aguirre considering that he’s fulfilling all of the club’s objectives right now, which was to be in the top spots of the Liga and to lead the team through Europe. But when the team plays the big teams, it hasn’t been at it’s best and to the supporters this is something negative. After these last few losses, it seems like there can be something going wrong with the team. It’s obvious that the team takes the Champions League more seriously and it’s noticeable. The motivation is extra high in that competition and the supporters believe that they can go far. We must forget about the Copa until next year. And in the league, the team must fight until the end against the big teams in order to be within the top spots. The team can play much better.

Peña La Avanzada. “It seems like the players aren’t motivated.”

I don’t like how this Atlético team plays. Aguirre is partly to blame because he’s the manager, but the players are also responsible. It seems like they’re not motivated, as if their energy was lost in the matches where the team used to excel in, such as the games against Valencia and Barcelona. It’s hard to believe, but it seems like the players don’t have any motivation to win anything important this season. The problem is in the back (defense), where nobody can play the long ball well. There needs to be somebody from the defense that can assist the ball from the back. When the rival pressures the team, everybody becomes nervous. The defense is where most of the problems are. We can compete for the top four spots in La Liga. And in Europe, I’m sure it’ll be different. I’m sure they will be very motivated in the matches against Porto. You’ll see a new Atlético. The truth is that the supporters expected something different from this team.

Here are some points that were brought up often:
-The roster is too short, and there’s a lack of good substitutes for the best players.
-Aguirre is a bonehead.
-The team plays at its best in the Champions League. Also known as “Liverpool syndrome”.
-The team has a good shot of knocking Porto out.

For the rest of you, what do YOU think is wrong with the team? Or could be improved?

The bear and the stars is basically taken the Madrid city coat of arms.

The symbol on the top-right shows a bear reaching for a strawberry tree. This symbol dates back to the 13th century, in which there was an abundance of bears and strawberry trees. Alfonso XI even described Madrid as “a good place for pork and bear”.

The seven stars respresent the Ursa Major, with the seven brightest stars forming the Big Dipper. Ursa Major is Latin for “Great Bear” so the bear reference is still there. The points on each star represent the five neighboring provinces to Madrid: Segovia, Ávila, Guadalajara, Cuenca and Toledo.

This is the coat of arms:

The red and white stripes were put onto the logo because of the color of the team’s jerseys. The original color of the Atletico Madrid jerseys was half-and-half between blue and white, ala Blackburn Rovers. This was also the color that Athletic Bilbao used on their jerseys, as Athletic Bilbao and Athletic de Madrid (Atlético’s original name) were technically the same club but separated into different branches.

According to legend, a member of Bilbao went to England to purchase Blackburn Rovers jerseys but could only find Southampton FC jerseys and purchased those instead. Athletic Bilbao have used these colors ever since, the red/white jerseys and black shorts. An Athletic de Madrid director traveled from Bilbao with extra jerseys and used the same red/white jerseys but used the Blackburn blue shorts instead. And voila, the Atleti jerseys were formed.

The red and white is also said to have been the colors of the string used in mattresses, with the material being used to make more jerseys. The color of the jerseys were compared to those of mattresses, giving Atlético the nickname los colchoneros, the mattress makers.

Smoosh them into a crest, and you get this:

And here are the other past Atlético crests:

First:

Second:

As you can see, the wings and the crown were taken off the second crest and the logo has been the same ever since.

See, history doesn’t always suck!

And my national team Mexico sucks. You guys SUCK! What kind of performance was that?! Oh Jeeeeesus, let me cool off for a bit, I may have a heart attack…

In the spirit of the great Madrid derby one week from today, I compiled a list of players that have been important to our club during these matches. This isn’t a list of the greatest players to have played for the club, as that’s a completely different beast to tackle. I’ve included players from the 60’s to present time:

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Joaquín Peiró and Miguel Jones

In the early days of Alfredi Di Stefano and the Real Madrid invasion of Europe, Joaquín Peiró and Miguel Jones were netting goals for us colchoneros. Jones was especially an important player for the club, helping win 4 titles. Both players participated in every derby in their Atlético Madrid career and helped net a few goals. A high point in the history of Atlético are the victories at the Copa del Rey (known as Copa del Generalísimo) finals against Real Madrid in 1960 and 1961, in which both players were the driving force that helped secure the title both times. Nothing better than winning a cup final derby, I say. (Peiró pictured on the left)

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Luis Aragonés and José E. Gárate

The frog-like ex-Spain coach lived a couple of glorious years as a player here at Atlético, and Gárate was a 3-time Pichichi winner from 1969-71. Both were instrumental in the derbies of the late 60’s and early 70’s, in which we produced great results (in other words, where we didn’t lose the derbies that often). The high point of the two was their performance in the amazing 3-0 victory of 1970. Gárate played in 8 seasons worth of derbies and Frog Man became trainer of Atlético right after retirement as a player in 1974, Pep Guardiola style. (the Thierry Henry hater is pictured)

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Rubén Cano

An Argentine-born Spanish international striker that played with the club from 1976-82 and was a deadly player in our derby victories during this time period. He scored twice in Atletico’s 4-0 win in 1977, and once in the 3-1 victory of 1980, and also a participant during all the derbies in this stint at our club. On a side note: he chose to represent Spain instead of Argentina in time for the 1978 World Cup. Boy, must he feel stupid. Why he is wearing an Argentina kit in the picture, I do not know.

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Dirceu

The long-haired Brazilian is an Atlético Madrid icon that played with the club from 1979-82. He netted Atlético’s final goal in the 3-1 victory of 1980 and played in the other 4 losses and 1 draw during his reign here. A very influential player to the club overall.

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Hugo Sánchez

The “pentapichichi” is the greatest North American player of all time and is a Real Madrid legend. But before breaking boundaries at the Bernabéu, he got his first taste of La Liga and European action here at Atlético. He was integral in the legendary 0-4 smashing of 1985. We made this man into a superstar, and he will never be forgiven by the Atletico faithful for going to the Bernabéu to live his dream.

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Manolo

The Spanish international striker played here from 1988-1995 and was Pichichi in 1992. He netted once in the 0-3 victory of 1991 and once in both the 2-0 victory and 3-2 loss of 1992. Like everyone I’ve mentioned, he participated in all of the derbies in his Atlético career.

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Honorable mentions:

Fernando Torres

An Atlético youth team product and currently a superstar at Liverpool, El Niño played in all of the derbies during his career in the first team, and netted in the 1-1 draw in 2006.

Leo Franco

A goalkeeper must be given credit where credit is due. Although it’s true that we haven’t won while he’s been playing with us, the performance given during the immense pressure of a derby match deserves some credit. Thank you, Argentine Quentin Tarantino.

Bernd Schuster: The moustached blonde German coach of Real Madrid also played for Atletico after his stint with Real. He scored in the important derby/Copa Del Rey final of 1992 securing us the Copa title.

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Win or lose, these men played their hearts out in both victories and heartbreaks (at least, most of them). I might’ve forgotten many players, but that’s because I haven’t seen any derbies before the 2000’s. For those of you that also know your Atlético facts, feel free to discuss in the comments.

In my next post, I’ll discuss Atletico’s greatest derby triumphs. Check out Real Madrid Offside for similar posts from the R. Madrid point of view.

Aupa Atleti!

But for now, I’ll present a few derbi videos from the past. As we haven’t defeated Real Madrid since 2000, it’s a bit hard to find recent videos that don’t show us getting schooled. And it’s a bit hard to find match highlights as well, as videos are usually made into 30 second goal videos.

Corey’s Real Madrid Offside also has a small collection of videos from the Real Madrid point of view.

Here are the videos after the jump:

The Ultras

A video recorded from the stands in the Ultras section. A great example of how strong the support is and how damn loud it can get.

Atlético vs. Real Madrid, 1995

Here’s an old video showing the atmosphere at the Calderon during a derby match. Some of the chants: “Chendo is Forrest Gump”, “Zamorano is a Gypsy”, “Redondo is a girl”. The chanting is like thunder:

The Streets outside the Calderon

You wouldn’t want to be caught wearing a Real Madrid kit here. It’s very intimidating, even if you’re there supporting Atleti.

Hala Madrid?

The video is in Spanish, but it’s very self-explanatory. And hilarious as well.

Atlético 1 – Real Madrid 1, 2005-2006 Season

The last time match at the Calderon that we didn’t lose. Always awesome to see Fernando Torres and Sergio Agüero share the field. (Just realized this video is also on R. Madrid Offside but since you’re already here, just press play and go for it).

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Man, we need some highlight videos where we WIN. No doubt we’re a great team, but not defeating Real Madrid in 8 years is pathetic. They have all the bragging rights and to give them an old fashioned schooling is something us Atleti faithful are willing to see. C’mon guys!

In the next post, I’ll discuss the best players that have ever participated in the Derbi. Like I said before, check out Real Madrid Offside as well to get in on the other perspective as well as our posts will be similar, but focused on our respective teams.

Aupa Atleti!

DEM.

BITS.

Anyways, here’s a quick post with some tidbits on the happenings in the world of Atlético Madrid (all the links are in Spanish, but I translated the good stuff for you guys):

- Kun Agüero and Diego Maradona, recorded a song for Kun’s fiancée and Diego’s daughter Giannina (more after the jump):

Aguero and Maradona have recorded a song for Giannina, the bride’s first and the daughter of the Argentine star, near the Argentine musical group Mezgaya. The song is called “Dalma y Giannina son mi inspiración” (Dalma and Giannina are my inspiration). As the title suggests, it is also dedicated to the other daughter of Diego.

…But Aguero and Maradona aren’t singing for the first time together: the two Albiceleste idols sang in unison last July at the Colonial Theater.

There will not be a cover of Eric Clapton’s “Cocaine” on the album. However, a “High School Musical” cover album is in the talks. Not.

And Kun, if you see an old man at the recording studio with crazy hair, glasses, and wearing anything blue or black, stay the HELL away. If he says “offer”, it really means “disease”, and you don’t want that.

-Fun stuff aside, 3 wins and 3 losses is what we’ll be dragging onto our backs going into the Madrid derby on Sunday the 19th.

Wait, the 19th?

That’s right, it’s International week again. We’ll have ants in our pants awaiting the almighty derby. Here’s the list of those called up:

Argentina – Sergio Agüero
Portugal – Maniche
Netherlands – Johnny Heitinga
Czech Republic – Tomáš Ujfaluši
France – Florent Sinama-Pongolle (about time)
Colombia – Luis Perea
Spain U-21 – Miguel de las Cuevas

This’ll keep our players busy and in-shape, as Real Netherlands will also be in good shape as they have some qualifiers as well. Har, har.

“It’s my fault.” “No, it’s my fault” “No, it’s our fault.”

Coach Aguirre takes the blame for the the loss to Barcelona:

“I am the one who is solely responsible. I failed in the line-up, in the preparation, in the team talk, in not re-arranging our attack after eight minutes… in everything else,”

But then Maxi defended him and made the players take the blame:

“It is normal that the coach wants to cover for his players but when we win the players are always praised and in this case we have to stand up and say we were at fault. One must take responsibility and change it,”

Antonio Lopez also has some words to say:

“However much the coach says it is his fault, is all ours. We played like children,” he said.

“The squad is really stunned by this really big result, but nothing has finished here and now we have to face Madrid at home and we have to win.

“We went out half asleep, with our heads down, but now we have to move on after a very hard day.

“There is always communication on the pitch, but against Barcelona there was no play nor any communication.”

And Enrique Cerezo, the president of the club himself, blames the players:

We are all responsible, but in the end, those responsible are those who played, because after all, they were the ones on the pitch. But there’s no need to dramatize, we lost against a great team and we must look into the future. Our players played a bad match, they know it and they have to resolve the problem within the pitch.

Time to move on. At least we never lost this bad at home. Like 0-6 or something. Oh, wait….

- Maxi will be back in time for the Madrid derby. He was injured in the match against Barcelona with a thigh injury.

Diego Forlan and Simao will also be back in time for the for the derby. This news is great, because having our best players will be crucial for derby day. And everyone’s favorite blonde Uruguayan was missed dearly. Damn you, injuries.

The international break will be used to recover from the wounds of Barcelona’s beatdown, and we’ll be more than ready for Real Madrid. Hopefully.

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I will team up with Corey from Real Madrid Offside in delivering the goods before the derby. We’ll coincide in re-living past Derbi moments on our respective team pages throughout the international break and will have in-depth analyses a few days before the big day.

Aupa Atleti!