Atletico Madrid are still reeling from Saturday’s heartbreaking Copa del Rey final defeat at the hands of Real Sociedad, but they must pick themselves up quickly. They face back-to-back La Liga matches against Elche and Athletic Club before the first leg of their Champions League semi-final showdown with Arsenal next Wednesday.
Atleti are all-but guaranteed to finish inside La Liga’s top four, meaning that the Champions League is everything to them. Because of this, Diego Simeone and his coaching staff will seek to ensure the players are at peak condition for the two matches at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano and Emirates Stadium.
Simeone’s focus is already on next week’s showdown with Arsenal, which is why he has instructed two of his players to train on their own over the next few days. As per an official medical report from Atleti, Ademola Lookman and Alexander Sorloth are suffering with discomfort, which is why they have been asked to train away from the group.
“Ademola Lookman and Alexander Sorloth finished the Copa del Rey final with discomfort. The club’s medical services have carried out tests that advise maximum caution to avoid the risk of injury, so they will follow an individualised plan in the coming days, working outside the group. The evolution of these discomforts will mark his return to training with his teammates.”
Lookman and Sorloth to miss Elche clash
The fact that Lookman and Sorloth will train on their own over the next couple of days all-but confirms that they will not be involved against Elche on Wednesday. It means that Simeone will only have Julian Alvarez and Antoine Griezmann as striker options, although it would be no surprise if they were also rested with a view to the Arsenal match next week. If that is the case, Alex Baena or Thiago Almada could be used in a false nine role at the Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero.
