Atlético Madrid beat local rivals Real Madrid 4-2 in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday
They took an early lead through Diego Costa, who bullied his way through the Real Madrid defence and put Atlético 1-0 up in the most Costa way possible.
The game was right, with Atlético nullifying most of Madrid’s attacking threats through sheer organisation and teamwork, as they do. Real did manage to turn the game around though, equalising through Karim Benzema and taking the lead with a penalty kick from Sergio Ramos.
Atlético don’t give up, though, and Costa stepped up when called upon once again to equalise in the dying moments of normal time to take the game into extra time.
There were many tired legs on the field, most of them wearing white, but Atlético’s dynamic midfield duo of Koke and Saúl never stopped running. Both midfielders scored in extra time to confirm Atléti’s 4-2 victory, as well as achieving a quite incredible stat that demonstrates their importance to the team.
Koke ran further than anyone on the pitch in that game, and Saúl was just behind him. The former racked up a stunning 16.1km on his endeavours while Saúl ran 15.85km.
The players to run the furthest distance for Real Madrid were Dani Carvajal, who tirelessly bombed up and down the right, and Karim Benzema, whose selflessness up front has been an important weapon for Madrid over the past decade.
Running stats sometimes don’t tell us much, but on this night they told us a lot.
This sort of endurance among the Atlético midfielders, combined with their technical ability, puts them in good stead to mount a title challenge this season.
With Real Madrid adjusting to life post-Ronaldo, and Barcelona reshaping their midfield without Andrés Iniesta, Atlético have the advantage of stability. They have kept hold of their most important players, most significantly Antoine Griezmann, and strengthened in key areas, with the arrivals of Thomas Lemar and Santiago Arias.
If they can beat Real Madrid in a European final after failing to do so previously, they should not be written off in the title race. This year, there could be three horses in it.
