The results crisis that Atletico Madrid’s footballers fell into during the most important part of the season has been successfully halted. After being eliminated from the Champions League and the Copa del Rey, along with a string of failures in the domestic league, Diego Simeone’s squad managed to beat Sevilla 2–1 a week ago. Now, in much better spirits, they are preparing to face Valladolid (22.00), a match they must win if they want to keep even a slim hope of contending for the title.However, while Simeone is preparing tactics for the clash with the league’s bottom side, he’s also thinking about how to improve the team for next season. According to Spanish media reports, some concrete ideas are already in motion.Finally back at home ❤️🤍 pic.twitter.com/v7uPM2WY9z— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) April 14, 2025 To start with, Nahuel Molina will be put on the transfer market this summer, despite the 27-year-old full-back having two years left on his contract with the Madrid club. It’s evident that he hasn’t been performing at the level he showed a year ago, when he became a World Cup champion with Argentina, which is why his playing time has been significantly reduced over the past two months.Reportedly, funds from his potential transfer could be redirected to Sporting Lisbon, as Simeone is said to want to strengthen the attack by signing Viktor Gyokeres. He’s convinced that the Swedish striker would prefer to come to Madrid over Manchester, even though United is listed in the media as the frontrunner to sign him this summer.Atlético Madrid have joined the race for Viktor Gyökeres and Benjamin Šeško, eyeing one to partner Julián Álvarez in Simeone’s attack.Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United remain in the mix for both strikers. pic.twitter.com/VVyK5M2svB— Transfer News (@TransfersLlVE) April 1, 2025 But Atletico first needs to come up with 70 millions, which is what the Portuguese club is asking for. That’s a big sum for Atletico, but part of it could be covered through sponsorship deals—specifically, with Nike. Their contract with the American sportswear manufacturer is about to expire, and renewal negotiations are ongoing. Since other companies are also interested, Atletico is now asking for more money. There are still over two months until the summer transfer window opens, but things are already starting to heat up. One thing’s for sure—we’re in for a very exciting transfer period.Now, whether tonight at the Metropolitano will be just as exciting, no one can say for sure. Atletico is the absolute favorite, having scored five goals in each of the last two matches against Valladolid. In December last year, they won away with a clean sheet, with goals from Clement Lenglet, Julian Alvarez, Rodrigo De Paul, Antoine Griezmann, and Alexander Sorloth.Is the title for Atletico Madrid a dream now?Valladolid is currently on a 10-game losing streak and has gone 11 matches without a win, earning only one point in that stretch. While they haven’t been mathematically relegated to the Segunda Division yet, it’s more than clear that we’ll be seeing the purple-whites in the second tier again come autumn.LA LIGA – MATCHDAY 31FridayValencia – Sevilla 1-0 (1-0)/Guerra 45+4/SaturdaySociedad – Mallorca 0-2 (0-1)/Larin 20, Darder 47/Getafe – Las Palmas 1-3 (1-0)/Alderete 19 – Silva 53, 74, McBurnie 62/Celta – Espanyol 0-2 (0-1)/Jaen 28, 63/Leganes – Barcelona 0-1 (0-0)/Saenz 48 og/SundayOsasuna – Girona 2-1 (1-0)/Budimir 38, Ibanez 79 – Asprilla 90+6/Alaves – Real Madrid 0-1 (0-1)/Camavinga 34/Betis – Villareal 1-2 (1-1)/Ruibal 3 – Barry 26, Perez 48/Ath. Bilbao – Rayo Vallecano 3-1 (0-1)/Sancet 58 pen, Williams 80, Sancet 90+4 – Ciss 37/Monday22:00: (1.15) Atl.Madrid (7.75) Valladolid (19.0)***odds are subject to change***
