At the Metropolitano, they are aware of the quality leap the squad has achieved this season, but there are still tasks pending for next summer. Undoubtedly, defense is the main focus for a sports management that already made many efforts last year. Although the improvement experienced this season is evident, there are still some steps to climb for the next campaign.
There is a specific position that concerned Simeone, especially after the departure of Mario Hermoso, although a replacement was never secured. Clement Lenglet would arrive on loan and, despite having shown great level, the reality is that he will have to return to FC Barcelona once this season ends. In that scenario, Atlético de Madrid continues to scour the market, although it seems there are big clubs with the same objectives on their agenda.
Chelsea Advances for Simeone's Desire
In recent months, there have been quite a few names of center-backs that have been mentioned to join the red-and-white team, although most will have a very high price. One who seems not to have lost hope is David Hancko, who was the priority for the colchonero team throughout the summer. Feyenoord requested 40 million euros to let him go, and an agreement was never reached to close that transfer.
According to TEAMtalk, now it would be Chelsea that has entered the race for the Slovak defender and would be considering making an offer. Recently, Juventus of Turin was very close to securing his signing, seeking to reach an agreement to incorporate him in the summer. Other clubs from England are also pushing hard, which distances the player from being able to return to the spotlight of Atlético de Madrid.
Priority for Atlético de Madrid
For now, the only sure thing is that César Azpilicueta and Axel Witsel are ending their contracts and will not renew, while Clement Lenglet will wait for an agreement with Barça. Meanwhile, Reinildo has an automatic renewal option if certain requirements are met, but it could happen that the club doesn't count on his services. The Mozambican has lost weight in Simeone's plans, being surpassed by Javi Galán and, on some occasions, also by César Azpilicueta.
It is a complicated situation, as all the departures will need their pertinent replacements in a market that will be full of operations. Names like Piero Hincapié are strongly mentioned, although Bayer Leverkusen will not make things easy for those clubs that want to take the Ecuadorian international. They will also try to exploit the national market, something that was reactivated last year and is already bearing good fruit this season.