Atletico Madrid are headed to its first Copa Del Rey Final since 2013.
Diego Simeone’s side avoided a late collapse at the Camp Nou on Tuesday, holding off Barcelona 4-3 on aggregate despite losing Tuesday’s second leg 3-0. American midfielder Johnny Cardoso started and played the full 90 minutes for Atletico Madrid, continuing his positive run in the squad.
It marked the first time this season that Cardoso has made four-consecutive starts.
Barcelona trimmed the aggregate deficit in half before halftime thanks to goals from Marc Bernal and Raphinha.
Bernal added his second goal of the match with 18 minutes to play, making it 3-0 Barcelona on the night and moving the hosts only goal back from forcing extra time. However, Argentinian goalkeeper Juan Musso stood tall to deny Barcelona from finding a late equalizer.
Musso finished the match with six saves, remaining in between the posts over No. 1 goalkeeper Jan Oblak.
Cardoso made five clearances, four interceptions, and won two duels from his midfield position.
Atletico Madrid will await the winner of the Real Sociedad-Athletic Bilbao series, with the Copa Del Rey Final taking place on April 18.
I don’t know what Atletico and Diego Simeone had planned as far as tactics and strategy…. but it’s a miracle they made it through on aggregate. I didn’t watch the first game so I though they just decided to park the bus in the second, which almost costed them the game……but then I look at the stats for the first game AND THEY ONLY HAD 35% POSSESSION IN THE FIRST GAME TOO (compared to 30% possession in the second). Game 2 was just an onslaught…..with constant attacking by Barcelona all game long …… Atletico were fighting for their lives out there lol
Game 1: They played a 4-4-2 with a Simeone / Llorente / Koke / Lookman midfield, with Nahuel Molina (who have an assist) at right-back, and won 4 – 0
Game 2: they played a 4-4-2 with Simeone / CARDOSO / Koke / Lookman with Llorente moved to right-back (Molina out) and get hammered 3 – 0.
….and then you look at the stats…..bruh
Game 1
Statistic Barcelona Atlético Madrid
Possession 65% 35%
Total Shots 13 11
Shots on Target 4 6
Passing Accuracy 91% 85%
Fouls Committed 9 11
Corners 8 5
Game 2
Statistic Barcelona Atlético Madrid
Possession 71% 29%
Total Shots 21 7
Shots on Target 9 2
Passing Accuracy 90% 74%
Fouls Committed 9 7
Corners 15 0
HOW???? Like I said, it’s an absolute miracle they made it through on aggregate…wow
I don’t recall who, or how many, but during the first leg Barca was down a few key pieces in mid-field and attack, I think Pedri was one of the injured players, so there was that. I watched parts of the second leg at the Camp Nou on ESPN+. In the first half, periodically, Atletico would come out of their deep lying defensive shell and press Barca high up the pitch. On several occasions it almost worked as Griessman shot at the goal keeper from just atop the 6 yard box, and on another occasion Griessman one-time volleyed a crisp cross, and it glanced off the post. If either of those had gone in – it would have effectively been check-mate Atletico. At half-time Ale Moreno commented on the same, that when Atletico parked the bus they had a hard time breaking out of their own half as there was no one in the midfield, upfield, to hold and distribute the ball after clearances. He hoped that Simeone would marshall his men to do the same in the second half, i.e. selectively pick and choose 4-5 occasions to advance lines, and press high up the pitch, as defending has not been Barca’s forte this season. I missed most of the 2nd half so I don’t know how well they implemented that strategy, but judging from the total shots, total shots on goal, and total lack of corners, I would say that Barca “stoned the ranch” and kept Atletico pinned in their own end for most of the 2nd half. Musso stood on his head and attained the 4th dimension, Timmy Howard style. If not for some stupendous point-blank reaction saves this would have probably gone to OT.
bizzy,
Barca. usually wins the possession battle. They have recently been pretty dominant ovet Atletico so you figure it had to change sometime.
And besides this was only a Copa Del Rey match.
While these particular percentages are a little extreme, Atletico know how to play without the ball. Possession in and of itself is worthless. It’s what you do with the possession that matters.
• Deep Defending: For over a decade, Atlético was defined by a compact, low-risk 4-4-2 or 5-3-2 defensive block. Simeone traditionally encouraged opponents to keep possession in non-dangerous areas, waiting to launch a rapid counter-attack.
• Based on Simeone’s personal style as a defender they emphasized grit, defensive solidity, and clinical efficiency over having the ball. They called it “Cholismo”: Diego Simeone’s nickname was “El Cholo,” given to him for his combative playing style. In case you’re wondering Pochettino has said that while he admires Simeone, he has never “copied anybody’s philosophy” and focuses on building something that feels like his own. Nevertheless both of them;
• Demand Intensity and Fitness: Expect extreme physical fitness and relentless work rates from their players.
• Collective Identity: Both emphasize the importance of the collective over the individual. Not unlike the Borg.
• Mental Toughness: Both coaches emphasize a strong “mentality” and “humility” as the foundation of a successful team.
• You should not doubt that Simeone will tell Pochettino everything he needs to know about Johnny or that Pochettino minds it if his defenders kick the crap out of the other team.
Lately things have changed. Atletico remain comfortable defending without the ball in big games, but it is not necessarily the primary game plan anymore.
Now that they have players like Julián Álvarez and the continued influence of Antoine Griezmann, the team has shifted toward shorter passes and more fluid build-up. While they still utilize a compact mid-block out of possession, they are no longer purely a “counter-attacking” side and often outplay top opponents in midfield control.
Statistical Snapshot (2024/25 Season)
Metric Statistic
Average Possession (La Liga) 55.0%
Average Possession (Champions League) 51.1%
Passing Accuracy ~87%
Goals Scored per Match 1.79
When it was just rumors and innuendo that Diego Simeone fancied Cardoso as an upgrade / replacement for his D midfield (Rodrigo de Paul aging out, Iron Man Immortal Koke Encarnacion also on the bubble for retirement) I was totally on board. Cardoso had shown at Real Betis that he could play in La Liga, and his metrics showed him to be one of the most effective ball-recovering, accurate ditributors of the sphere among D-mids in La Liga. Nonwithstanding the eggs that he had lain in his first appearances for USMNT, I think that right now he has a solid shot at a spot on the roster for the WC. Simeone is a very demanding coach when it comes to D, and for tidy possession play. Cardoso is in the perfect place for him to mature and refine his skills, barring injury, his trajectory is USMNT WC roster. Add the fact that Pochettino and Simeone played together on the Argentine national team in the 2000s, and I should think that Cardoso is a mutual investment project between old friends that could bear fruit for us at the WC. Just my 2 cents.
Cardoso seems to have secured a regular spot with AM now. Considering that they are pretty consistently the 3rd best team in the league and probably among the top dozen in Europe, this is a very meaningful achievement. I think he definitely needs to called in for this month’s friendlies.
He has to do something with it if it comes though. He’s been either average to down right awful for the NT (Switzerland, Türkiye, Colombia). Also he hasn’t been able to stay healthy for more than 4 games in a row this season.
JR,
At least Johnny is trending upward.
If he gets called in and does well in the friendlies and goes back and finishes the season doing well……. then all should forgiven.
After all, what have you done for me lately, is always a powerful variable.. He’s done enough to at least get on that 35-55 provisional list.
V: just not being injured would be an upward trend at this point, hasn’t been able to stay fit all season. Is La Liga form Johnny better than Roldan? I think so, but he’s never played anywhere near that form for NT.
JR.
Unless you are IV, who does not understand that teams and players get better or maybe get worse, the performances in the Turkey/Swiss combo do not matter. Not today.
USMNT players who played in that combo have had time to improve and gel as a team if they did not look good or they have been dropped. It is 2026 now. The Turkey/Swiss combo is in the past. The lineup in those two games featured most of the same players that most of SBI think will be in the final WC 26.
The difference is the TEAM is playing better now, or so it seems. It looks like the light bulb has finally gone off in everyone’s head. These guys are professionals not high school, select or college players.
The USMNT probably already know who #1 to # 26 are At this point the only really dynamic factor is injuries.
The provisional list ( 35-55 players) is due May 11. That is the real drop dead list since only players on that list can be called in to the 26 OR as injury replacements up until 24 hours before Game 1.
The Belgium game is March 28- 24 days away. Being called in for the three games before Germany would be a good sign but if it doesn’t happen it is still not the end of the world ,
For example, both Atalanta and Atletico Madrid have 12 games before May 11.
In theory if Musah and Johnny have strong showings in those games they “could” make Pochettino’s job harder . Those two in particular because both of them have spent significant time with the team so presumably we know that they fit in well with the troops..
I’m not saying their chances are great but all Johnny and Yunus can do, going forward, is play the best they can and then leave it up to the management.
For Cardoso, like all other players in the USMNT, there are three elements to making the USMNT World Cup roster…
1) Health and Fitness
2) Club form
3) USMNT form, when called in
Cardoso is healthy and fit and he’s in a good run of form with Atletico…they have 4 more games across all competitions before the March roster drops in about two weeks…if he continues to play for Atletico and is healthy, he will get called in for this coming window.
But…to Johnnyrazor’s point, in this window, he will need to take advantage of the opportunity and clearly illustrate that he should be selected for the DM spot instead of Morris, Roldan, Berhalter, and yes, Musah.
Cardoso is clearly a quality player…you don’t play for Simeone at Atletico unless you are legit…and you definitely don’t start vs Barca yesterday unless you have Simeone’s trust, are a real player, and have a pair of stones on you…let’s not forget, Johnny broke through from the academy ranks in Brazil, where quality players are everywhere, so he has something.
All that said, let’s see what Cardoso does this March window…I hope he brings it…competition for spots is a great thing for the USMNT.