Jose Mourinho and Diego Simeone have not stood on opposite touchlines since 2014, when Simeone's Atletico Madrid knocked Mourinho's Chelsea out of the Champions League at Stamford Bridge. On Sunday they meet again at the Metropolitano, and this time it is a Madrid derby.
Mourinho is 100 days into his second spell at Real Madrid. Simeone has been at Atletico since 2011 and has now taken charge of more than 800 games.
What the table says
Real go into the derby second on 15 points from six matches, level with Real Betis. Atletico sit fourth on 13. Barcelona are out in front on 21, which is the number that makes this awkward for Mourinho: lose, and Real are six behind after seven rounds.
Atletico arrive in decent shape. Back-to-back defeats by Athletic Club and Liverpool were followed by a 3-0 win over Real Sociedad and a 4-0 win at Osasuna. Real edged past Elche 3-2, and the way they did it says something. Two up, pegged back to 2-2, then rescued in the 91st minute by substitute Carlos Espi.
Mourinho knows the control is not there yet
"It's not normal to be winning 2-0 then the other team is able to equalise," Mourinho said. He has been careful not to let anyone frame this as Real chasing Hansi Flick's perfect Barcelona, who have won eight out of eight in all competitions.
"The league is a marathon and it's not always a straight line," he said. "There will be obstacles, but we will be there to overcome them." Pressed on whether his side are performing as he wants, he was blunt enough: "I am aware of the fact we can improve, we have to improve." He also rejected the idea that he arrives with a fixed system. "I've evolved alongside my players. You have what you like and don't like as a manager but then you have to work with the group of players you have."
The Metropolitano problem
Real have won only two of their last eleven away games at the Metropolitano, and their last La Liga win there came four years ago. Atletico took the corresponding fixture 5-2 last season, an early warning sign for Xabi Alonso's project that never really got answered.
Simeone has identified where the danger is. "They're better in transition than us," he said. "When there's a loss of possession, they look for Mbappe and Vinicius Jr, they play to that strength. We have to read the game well and not allow any turnovers."
His own team is still being assembled after a summer in which seven players left and five arrived. Julian Alvarez has missed two games with a muscle problem but will feature at some stage. Alexander Sorloth is out. Jonathan David, the Canadian signing, has scored in each of his last two appearances.
Simeone's message to his newer players was about temperature rather than tactics. "It's normal for new players to feel pressure, with the excitement a game like this generates, but they need to be calm. Football is about composure."
Respect, of a sort
The head-to-head favours Mourinho: three wins and a draw from six meetings. Their only previous derby as rival managers came in 2012 at the Vicente Calderon, and Real won 4-1.
There is warmth between them now, which was not always the case. "I have huge respect for Mourinho, I've been an admirer of his for a long time," Simeone said. Mourinho, asked about being invited to speak about Simeone for a documentary, said he had no hesitation.
Both will spend 90 minutes trying to ruin the other's weekend anyway.
Fixture: Atletico Madrid v Real Madrid, Metropolitano Stadium, Sunday 20 September 2026. Real second on 15 points, Atletico fourth on 13, Barcelona top on 21. Mourinho has three wins and a draw from their six meetings. Prediction: 1-1, with Alvarez off the bench and Real's transitions blunted by a deep Atletico block.
0 Comments