San Mamés Stadium is not usually the easiest ground for Diego Pablo Simeone 's Atlético de Madrid . The red-and-whites visit a difficult ground, a stadium that in recent seasons has given more headaches than joy. In Bilbao , the colchoneros, in particular, have won only two games out of the last ten, which are not very encouraging figures.
Last season, the red-and-whites fell in a crushing 3-0 defeat in the Copa del Rey . Iñaki Williams and Nico Williams put the tie on the ropes for the Madrid side at half-time, and Gorka Guruzeta finished off the score after the break. In the League, things were not any better: Simeone 's men lost 2-0, with a goal from the Guipuzcoan striker and a great goal from Nico Williamsthat Oblak could not stop .
For Antoine Griezmann , it is indeed a special home, having formed at Real Sociedad, he experiences the duels against Athletic with intensity. Diego Pablo Simeone's men's last victory at San Mamés bears the signature of the Frenchman: it was in 2022. There he left one of the most iconic celebrations remembered by Atlético de Madrid fans.
Antoine Griezmann facing his fourth favorite victim
It was a goal scored in 2016, when the Frenchman equalised a game that had been going very hard for Atlético Madrid. Antoine Griezmann fired in from outside the area after combining with Fernando Torres and left an iconic "C'est la maison" ("This is my house"). Words that were addressed to the Madrid fans in the face of constant rumours about the Frenchman, who also scored a hat-trick there, his first as an Atlético Madrid player.
At the renovated San Mamés stadium, the colchoneros caused a stir in 2014, winning 1-2 in the Copa del Rey . It was a very tough tie, in which the Madrid team overturned a goal by Aritz Aduriz with goals from Raúl García and Diego Costa . They earned their place in the semi-finals of the Cup in Bilbao and, in the process, were the first to win there.
Simeone won six times at San Mamés
Diego Pablo Simeone , as coach of Atlético de Madrid , has played a total of 14 games at the stadium next to the Nervión River. He has won six, lost six and drawn two, a record that could be improved. He started off like a rocket, winning five of the first six games at the Bilbao ground.
Marcelino, the stone in the shoe
But in recent years, especially with Marcelino García Toral in charge, things have become more complicated. The colchoneros have lost four of their last five visits to Rafael Moreno 's ground. Without a doubt, a very difficult duel is expected tonight, against a team that is usually a concern for the Argentine coach.
Diego Pablo Simeone returns to a stage that has not forgotten one of the worst actions of the Argentine as an Atlético player. It was the field where he left his studs on the leg of Julen Guerrero , the local idol, something that has never been forgiven in Bilbao . The final in Bucharest, another open wound that still festers among Athletic Club fans.