Player Focus: Simeone Beginning Koke's Move Back to Central Midfield

Atlético Madrid coach Diego Simeone’s substitutions and tactical changes during Saturday’s derbi at Real Madrid won the game for his side, and may point to how his side’s style could evolve this season.

Just after the hour mark, with the game poised at 1-1, Simeone surprisingly replaced his captain Gabi with Arda Turan. The subsequent reshuffle saw Koke come inside to take up a deeper holding midfield position, with Turan in a roving attacking role on the left. 

This apparently pre-planned offensive move saw Atlético suddenly have much more possession in Madrid’s half. The visitors created a string of chances, including the opportunity which Arda converted for the winner.

At his post-match press conference the Colchoneros coach said the removal of Gabi had not been due to injury or fear of sending off, but was a deliberate move to give the team more creativity in central areas. “I did not like the team because we lacked precision between the lines and without the ball,” Simeone said. “We improved a bit afterwards. The move of Koke in the centre gave us fluidity, the entrance of Arda gave us creativity.” 

The idea of Koke as a central playmaker is not a new one, with the Madrid-born player having played that role all the way up through the youth ranks at the club, and also with Spain’s teams. His emergence as a first team player at Atlético, though, has mostly been on either the left or right of midfield, where he has plenty of defensive duties, but also freedom to move around and create.

Simeone, who knows a thing or two about playing central midfield at the top level, has generally prefered to ensure a solid base by pretty much always starting Gabi alongside either Tiago or Mario Suarez in the centre. Presumably because ‘El Cholo’ knows that Gabi and Tiago were both among the most prolific tacklers in La Liga. The club captain’s average of 3.8 tackles per game was the fourth highest of all players in the league last season, while Tiago came in eighth in that particular regard with 3.4 game. Both players were also high up the list in terms of interceptions, with the Portuguese making 2.6 per outing, and Gabi halting opposition moves in this fashion on average 2.2 times per game.

Koke’s stats in this area are not bad - but simply not as good either. Last season he made 2.7 tackles and 0.9 interceptions per game. He made 1.0 clearances per game, whilst being dribbled past 1.9 times and blocking 0.3 shots. In most teams this would be a more than decent defensive contribution, but for the ultra-demanding Simeone these figures are probably not what is expected of a regular starter in one of those deep central roles.

However, on the ball Koke does offer the side something which neither Gabi or Tiago [or Mario Suárez] can provide. The youngster scored 6 goals, made 13 assists and played an average of 1.9 key passes per game in La Liga last term. None of Atlético’s other options for deep midfield made a similar contribution. Tiago scored twice [both after moving into the box for a set-piece], while providing one assist and 0.5 key passes per game. Gabi had eight assists [mostly from taking corners and dead-balls around the area] and played an average of 1.5 key passes per game. 

Playing Koke deeper would also help evolve Atleti’s style of play. Many of his assists last year came when he cut inside and then played a reverse ball behind the opposition defence for Diego Costa to run onto. With Costa gone, and the less mobile or pacy Mario Mandzukic now Atlético’s centre-forward, that option is less likely to be successful. The 22-year-old's ability to keep possession – as showcased with his team-leading 123 touches and impressive 91% pass completion rate during Spain's recent friendly in Paris – could help the team take a more patient approach when required. 

This would be useful as Atlético have really struggled to make chances in open play this season. In their first five competitive games of the new campaign Simeone's side have scored six goals. Four of these have been headers from set-pieces, while Mandzukic’s Supercopa winner came from a long hoof forward by goalkeeper Miguel Ángel Moyá. The only carefully constructed goal was Turan’s decider on Saturday, which was made by Griezmann and right-back Juanfran; when Koke was in deep midfield.

This is not to argue that Atlético are going to turn into tiki-takkers, but there might be some more emphasis on keeping hold of the ball and moving opposition defences around. They won last year's Spanish title while averaging just 48.9% possession, which is pretty incredible, and probably not repeatable, especially without Costa.

Ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League Group A opener at Olympiakos, Simeone was asked specifically about Koke’s likely position this season, and gave further insight into his thinking.

“The other day, Koke’s presence in the midfield balanced us more in the game,” he said. “That allowed us to start having the possibility of the full-backs attacking more evenly. With the entrance of Arda and Griezmann, the team’s style was more fluid. Then when Arda scored we sent on Mario Suárez, and Koke returned to his former place [on the wing]. You have to do what is right for the moment.”

These comments suggest that what is right for the moment is likely to change from game to game, or even during the 90 minutes, over the course of the season. But the likelihood is that, long term, Koke will develop into a deep-lying creator for both club and country.

In what position do you see Koke's future? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below