Atlético Madrid Faces Basque Test at San Mamés
Atlético Madrid head north to San Mamés on Saturday evening, walking into one of La Liga’s most hostile arenas with early-season momentum firmly behind them.
Sitting third after three games and still unbeaten, Diego Simeone’s side arrive with a sharp edge: seven points on the board, seven goals scored, only three conceded. They opened with a controlled 2-0 win over Málaga CF, were dragged into a 2-2 shootout by Villarreal CF, then sent a statement with a 3-1 victory away to Sevilla FC. This looks like a team that has shaken off the summer dust quickly.
Now comes the Basque test.
Atlético’s squad settles after turbulent summer
For once, Simeone’s medical report is short. The bigger stories are about who is available rather than who is missing, and one of the summer’s longest-running sagas has finally eased.
Julián Álvarez is back in the matchday squad. The forward missed recent sessions through illness and spent the window surrounded by heavy speculation over a move to Barcelona. That noise has died down. He has completed a full week of training and is ready to be called upon in Bilbao, a timely boost for a side that has leaned on collective goals rather than a single talisman so far.
There is, however, one major absence at the top of the pitch. Main centre-forward Alexander Sørloth is still out, recovering from the muscle injury he picked up in mid-August. Without him, Atlético lose their natural reference point in the box, something Simeone will have to solve again at San Mamés. Midfielder Obed Vargas also remains sidelined.
The flip side? Fresh firepower has just walked through the door. Late-window loan signing Jonathan David has been named in the travelling squad and could make his La Liga bow. Simeone is unlikely to throw him in blindly at one of Spain’s most intense grounds, but even a cameo would give a first glimpse of how he fits into this retooled attack.
At the back, the picture is clearer. Robin Le Normand has served his suspension and is expected to step straight back into the starting XI. His return should restore some authority to a defence that, despite decent numbers, still looks like it has another gear to find.
How Atlético could line up
Simeone has options, but the structure feels familiar. Atlético’s predicted XI for San Mamés:
Oblak; Llorente, Hancko, Pubill, Grimaldo; Barrios, Hjulmand; Simeone, Kang-in, Lookman; Baena.
It’s a side built to suffer without the ball and then break with speed and precision. Marcos Llorente’s energy down the right, Álex Grimaldo’s delivery on the left, and the technical craft of Kang-in and Lookman between the lines give Atlético plenty of ways to hurt opponents, even without a classic No 9.
San Mamés, though, has a way of stripping away theory. It demands personality.
Kick-off and how to watch
The game gets underway at 3:15pm BST on Saturday, 5 September.
Supporters in the United Kingdom can watch Athletic Club vs Atlético Madrid live on LALIGATV.
An unbeaten start, a settled star staying put, a new striker waiting in the wings, and a brutal away ground on the horizon — this is the kind of early-season fixture that tells you whether Atlético are just in form, or truly built for a title chase.
