According to SPORT, after failing to go top of LaLiga, Atletico Madrid are again five points behind Barcelona. Although they scored first, they ultimately lost to Flick's Barcelona, and one of Simeone's decisions has come under scrutiny.
When the Civitas Metropolitano crowd booed Alvarez for missing a chance, Simeone backed him from the touchline and kept him on for the full match. Simeone made substitutions in three windows but used only four of his five substitutes, and never took off the "Spider-Man."
Sørloth came on first, followed by Hjulmand and Cardoso, and Jonathan David came off the bench in the 78th minute. With the team trailing, these changes were all attacking ones, but the team perhaps needed a fifth substitution: Lookman.
Lookman Overlooked
With De Jong playing as an emergency right-back and Atletico Madrid needing to come back from 1-2 down, the Nigerian winger would have been the obvious choice in any other situation. But not this Sunday. Simeone did not send him on, even with one substitution still available.
Lookman is going through a difficult spell, and his form is a long way from what he showed in his first few months at the Metropolitano. Simeone has repeatedly pointed this out in his press conferences.
Simeone demands more from the player. Lookman had scored against Barcelona twice before, but this time he could only watch from the bench as the team's chance of competing for the LaLiga title slipped away, without being given an opportunity to help. Atletico Madrid need the best version of Lookman, but the Nigerian has a lot of work to do to regain the Argentine coach's trust.