Diego Simeone suggests January midfield signing to Atletico Madrid

Atletico Madrid have supposedly been keen to bring in a holding midfielder for some time, and despite their summer of big spending, did not bring one in. After the failed Arthur Vermeeren experiment, manager Diego Simeone has requested one of their former targets.

According to Relevo, Simeone has again suggested the signing of Alan Varela. The 23-year-old moved to Porto in 2023 from Boca Juniors for €12m, and is El Cholo’s preferred option for the position. The likes of Samu Costa and Luis Milla have been linked to Atletico, but they were options liked by departing Sporting Director Andrea Berta, as was Vermeeren.

Question: "Between Lino and Gallagher, who are you starting tomorrow?"

Diego Simeone: "Conor gives us more work rate, late runs into the box, and ball recovery. Lino is more of a winger, staying wide, more offensive, engaging in one-on-ones, and better at link-up play. In… pic.twitter.com/iWNB34ChNS

— Atletico Universe (@atletiuniverse) December 20, 2024

Currently Simeone has been using Pablo Barrios and Rodrigo de Paul in the middle of his midfield. With veteran Koke Resurreccion playing less, it’s been a position that Simeone has clearly been thinking about for some time. Axel Witsel is probably the closest who has played the role that Varela would in theory occupy, but Simeone has made it clear he prefers the Belgian in defence.

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