Atletico Madrid look to sign new midfielder in January transfer window

With just two victories from their past eight matches, Atletico Madrid has been having a terrible time lately. Their Champions League losses to Benfica and Lille were exacerbated by their Liga season opener against Real Betis. There are already questions over Diego Simeone's team's future.

Atletico has been disoriented in recent weeks, even though they spent €185 million in the summer, bringing in big-name additions like Julian Alvarez, Robin Le Normand, Conor Gallagher, and Alexander Sorloth. According to the MD, they are already thinking about making a move in January to fill their defensive midfield position.

After losing out on Pierre Emile-Hojbjerg, Ederson, and Guido Rodriguez, they have been thinking about bolstering this part of the field for the past two summers. According to the Catalan newspaper, Samu Costa of RCD Mallorca is one of Atletico's two Liga choices. 

In order to bring in him in January, they would have to pay his €20 million release clause, and Getafe would make it difficult to sign Luis Milla even if he would be less expensive. The other option would be to investigate possible opportunities overseas.

After learning the details of the dealings, Atletico chose not to pursue Ismael Bennacer of AC Milan, despite their late-night inquiries. The midfielder for Rossoneri will now be sidelined till at least January. At the same position, Atletico paid €18 million for Arthur Vermeeren last season, but Simeone's intentions did not work out with him.

“We are going to keep trying” : Koke

The 2024–25 season has started poorly for Atletico Madrid, and Sunday's loss to Real Betis makes it back-to-back losses for Diego Simeone's team. Los Colchoneros is undoubtedly under increasing pressure. According to Diario AS, club skipper Koke Resurreccion acknowledges that form needs to improve immediately but does not think this disadvantage is insurmountable.

Koke said, “We have to continue. Barcelona are 10 points ahead of us, there’s a lot of matches left and we have to be quiet, work harder in training and compete. The path is work and we are going to keep trying.”