Any team that intends to seriously challenge for titles must not only be strong at home, but also put in a remarkable performance as visitors. And Atlético, for the moment, is far from this state. Just two wins in ten games away from the Metropolitano seem very little for a team that wants to fight for everything. This Saturday, in San Mamés, it fell again. They did so against an Athletic team that showed more vigor to maintain the ambition and determination with which both teams worked from the start of the match.
Far from disappearing, this problem has worsened during the current season, although Diego Pablo Simeone, in the press room, wanted to minimize it: “If you look, with the exception of the differential teams, most of them have problems. We have ours”, simply emphasized the coach of the mattresses. “We try to be more attentive in each away match to be able to improve. Hopefully in the future matches we play, we will improve,” hoped the Argentine coach. He did not tersely admit that Athletic was superior to his team: “We had goal situations, I don’t know if it was more or less. We couldn’t convert and they did,” he said.
“The feeling is that you get up and go for everything,” described Valverde about the momentum with which Athletic, this time, showed from the first minute. “It was a great match. Last year we also did like that and they scored a goal against us in stoppage time. We had to exploit our chances and fortunately it went our way. You have to think about whether it will be the best match of the season or not, but it is true that we had to win a match like this in San Mamés. We hope that it will motivate us,” Valverde said.
San Mamés once again confirmed the problems Atlético faces when playing away. At the Metropolitano, supported by his supporters, he feels strong and convinced of victory. Outside, he is not really regaining vigor in the sectors. “The matches against Athletic are always very similar. In the first half we had those of Almada and Julián. In the second it was more equal, we had that of Sorloth and that’s where his goal came from, very beautiful”, Simeone continued analyzing. It’s a trend, that of not winning away, which already cut short Atlético’s aspirations last year.
By the end of the year, two of the three matches will be played away (PSV and Girona). And the first of 2026 also takes place away, notably at Anoeta against Real Sociedad. Thus, the main mission of the Colchoneros in a very short period of time is to change their disturbing reality away from the Metropolitan. Not only did he arrive in San Mamés more than 20 minutes late because of the route that the Ertzaintza had traced from the hotel to the stadium, which greatly irritated the red and white expedition. They also came out further down the table, nine points behind Barcelona and four behind Villarreal, who have a game in hand.