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January 10, 2024

Real Madrid and Atletico begin their Madrid trilogy with a Saudi Super Cup matchup – La Liga

On Wednesday, the first of three matches between La Liga heavyweights in three different competitions in three weeks takes place in the Middle East.

“Personally, it’s not that I particularly like coming across Atlético Madrid,” Carlo Ancelotti stated that although he wouldn’t typically have to travel so far, he has grown accustomed to it. Real Madrid’s most recent matchup with their city rivals ended in a loss at the Metropolitano, a minute’s drive from Valdebebas, where they are based. It will be there as well when they meet in just eight days. However, their first encounter—the first of three games in three different competitions—will take place 4,963 kilometers away in Riyadh on Wednesday.

Like Turkey, Spain’s Super Cup is being held in Saudi Arabia. While there won’t be many Spanish fans in attendance, unlike Turkey, the event will proceed as planned. On Thursday, Barcelona will face Osasuna in the second semi-final, but the tournament—one of the first sporting events sold to Saudi Arabia by former Federation president Luis Rubiales and ex-Barcelona player Gerard Piqué in 2019—will kick off with a Madrid derby on Wednesday. The following week, the Copa del Rey round of 16 will return in Madrid, followed by a league meeting at the Santiago Bernabéu on February 4.

By then, Ancelotti will have faced Diego Simeone, his neighbor in La Finca on the western outskirts of Madrid, as many times as any other coach in his 32-year career. That league fixture will mark their 24th encounter as coaches. They’ve also met twice as players, and on the eve of this Super Cup semi-final, Ancelotti recalled an April 2000 match where Simeone, then playing for Lazio, scored the only goal in a win against Juventus, managed by Ancelotti at the time.

“We have spoken lots of times, we know each other because we have played each other a lot. We live close by, and sometimes we see each other. Always with a lot of respect,” Ancelotti said. “I feel good in this ‘white’ atmosphere [at Madrid], and, as an observer, I think Someone feels good in the Atlético atmosphere. He has the ideal profile for them: if not, you don’t last all that time at one club.” Ancelotti recently signed a new contract at the Santiago Bernabéu, demonstrating how determined Brazil is to see him lead them into a World Cup. It is practically unheard of that he did so in the middle of the season.

They have each won eight of their managerial meetings thus far. This is not their most excellent match; to begin with, they guided their teams to the first-ever European Cup final involving clubs from the same city. And as the first of three derbies in as many weeks approaches, the question of which matters more has unavoidably been brought up.

Super Cup, Copa del Rey, and league: each event is slightly larger than the last, building on the success of the previous one. Although Atlético’s victory over Real in their season-opening encounter has proven to be the catalyst for change, it hasn’t done much to change the situation. 

“That game did us a lot of damage, [but] it seems we have fixed that, and I think tomorrow we can be a better version [of ourselves],” Ancelotti said.

Since then, Madrid has restructured its midfield, shifted Jude Bellingham to the left, improved its defensive stability, and remained undefeated.

Atlético, on the other hand, have changed: they’re scoring more goals, but the defensive solidity that once defined them has been missing. They’ve lost their last four away games and fallen 10 points behind in the league—suggesting that February’s meeting might be less significant, with the title slipping out of reach.

Choosing between the Copa del Rey and the Super Cup seems straightforward. Still, the move to Saudi Arabia has drained some of the spirits. This competition was always more than just a glorified Community Shield for most fans. The introduction of a final format has made it feel more important. It’s also a semi-final, just a short path to silverware. Winning the Copa del Rey, by comparison, would still leave them three games from the final. Besides, there’s no natural choice, as Simeone often says, almost to the point of cliché: partido a partido—one game at a time. And the next game is a derby, which is never just another match, even when played so far from home.

When Atletico and Fede Valverde last faced off in Saudi Arabia, they recall how a late, skillful foul on Álvaro Morata cost them the 2020 championship and won Fede a ton of admirers. “I don’t know if that put me in the hearts of Madrid fans but I am not proud of it,” the Uruguayan said at the time. “I would do it again for sure,” he said before this derby. “It was very close and it was decisive, so if it was the same I would do it again – for my team, the values I grew up with. It’s not about that moment, it’s that it was my first Super Cup.

“There are people who think you have to play [this] in Spain, but we have to compete, to win, make people happy. It’s nice to compete against the best and Atlético is one of the best, not just in Spain but in Europe. The cup will be very important and the league too [but] this is another title, another derby, and it’s a lovely game to enjoy.”

As Ancelotti said: “Atlético are our rival: always have been, always will be. Personally, it’s not that I particularly like coming across Atlético Madrid because they’re one of the best but we have to play them and they will feel the same way. We’re two very strong teams, and it will be hard.”

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