MADRID (AP) — It’s good to be an Atlético Madrid fan right now.
One of the most passionate fan bases in Europe is also one of the most patient, and the team has always been in the shadow of powerhouses Real Madrid and Barcelona.
Atlético are in the lead, but eliminated Barcelona in the quarterfinals of champions league And city rivals Real Madrid will have to overcome a one-goal difference to Bayern Munich in Wednesday’s second leg of the quarter-finals in Germany.
Atletico can complete a strong week by winning the Copa del Rey for the first time in more than a decade when they face Real Sociedad in Sevilla on Saturday.
The fans are happy and the club is making the most of this moment.
Atlético posted on Wednesday: series of posts About X who provokes Barcelona and celebrates its victory. The team lost Tuesday’s match 2-1 at the Metropolitano Stadium, but won 2-0 against Barcelona last week.
“How are you doing?” said one of the first posts on Atlético’s X account shortly after the match.
“We love the smell of freshly cut grass in the morning,” the team said in a post on Wednesday, an apparent reference to Barcelona coach Hansi Flick’s complaint on Tuesday that the grass at the Metropolitano was too high and hurting the team.
Another post showed a video of the players celebrating on the field in front of Atlético fans after the match, with the phrase “more than a club”, alluding to the same word Barcelona use to describe themselves.
One post showed Atletico players wearing sunglasses and using earphones, and cited a similar photo of Barcelona star Lamine Yamal acting like LeBron James ahead of the 2016 NBA Finals, which James’ Cleveland Cavaliers overcame a 3-1 series deficit to win.
Yamal said before Tuesday’s game that James is a source of inspiration for him. He also used a photo of James holding the NBA trophy on Instagram after winning the title in 2016.
Another video showed a lion with a picture of Barcelona’s shield transforming into a dog after trying to attack a man holding Atlético’s shield.
Atlético captain Koke Resurreción said: “I’m proud of what we’ve done all season.” “We played against one of the most difficult opponents, with the best young players in the world, and we got a deserved victory. This is historic for the club. We know that it will not be easy to reach the top four in the Champions League.”
Atlético, who are aiming for their first Champions League title, have not reached the semi-finals since 2017, when they were eliminated by Real Madrid. They also lost to Madrid in the final in 2014 and 2016.
Atlético eliminated Barcelona en route to these two finals. The club reached the European Cup final once more in 1974, but lost to Bayern Munich.
“It’s great to be able to offer the fans a Champions League semi-final and a Copa final,” said Atlético forward Antoine Griezmann. He remained with Atlético when they lost the 2016 European final, and plans to leave the club at the end of the season to try his hand at Major League Soccer.
Atlético is consistently the third-ranked club in Spain. There was little to break the dominance of record 15-time European champions Real Madrid and five-time Champions League winners Barcelona. Since 2015, the powerhouses have joined forces to win all but one Spanish league title, and Atlético achieved that in 2021.
If the team can bounce back from the celebrations from Tuesday, they can take home their first Copa title since 2013 on Saturday. Defender Marcos Llorente said he only slept for about three hours after the game against Barcelona.
Coach Diego Simeone said, “I hope they get some rest and we will try to have a good final on Saturday.”
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