IT SHOULD HAVE been smiles and waves as Atletico de Madrid walked out to face Hercules on Sunday evening.
This was not seen as the game of the weekend. Barcelona lifting their crown or the relegation battle was all deemed more important.
Although this game involved a team fighting for Europe and another about to be relegated, journalists were focused elsewhere.
That was up until noon when Quique Sanchez Flores left a fanbase divided. Quique, whose future had been up in the air until last week, dropped Diego Forlán from the squad, just hours before the last home game of the season at the Vicente Calderon on Sunday.
Whilst their relationship has been strained, it sent shockwaves through Spain as it was believed that this too would be the last game Diego Forlán would play at the Calderon. Quique had denied him his goodbye and some fans were determined to see that he didn’t get one too.
All of a sudden all eyes and ears were on the Calderon
The Final Curtain
Whisper it around the Atletico offices but Gil Marin and Enrique Cerezo probably want to hug Quique right now. All week the newspapers have been promoting this as the final curtain for many of the clubs stars.
Kun Agüero, David De Gea, Tiago, Forlán and a few more all have uncertain futures. Add the uncertainty of the manager’s future and the club was starting to look more like a supermarket than a football club.
The club was bracing itself for some very uncomfortable questions about the future of its stars. The official line would be that they were waiting until the summer but the club knew that the press would never accept that.
The future of Quique has been one of the main stories. Rumours of contract rejections and u turns were floating around Madrid like pollen in the air but last week he came out and announced that the game against Hercules would be his last.
Flores has divided Atlético fans. For some he is a hero but for others he has been a failure. Those in the pro-Quique camp point to the cup success and those on the anti side will point to the problems of the defence, fall-outs with players and the failure to build on last year’s success. Whilst fans outside the ground were divided, most inside it were united in their love for Atlético’s very own ‘Special One’. That was until noon yesterday.
Pistols At Dawn
It is well known that both Quique and Forlán had a difficult relationship. But when the Uruguayan was scoring there was no problem.
However, when the goals dried up so did all their goodwill for each other. Forlán made some statements to the press about his future and whilst he was honest, some fans felt he showed a lack of love for the club.
Forlán felt that his manger owed him a favour and would back him up considering that he had rushed through pre-season training to be ready for the new season. The one-time favourite was shocked when he found that Quique had taken the fans side. Worse was to come when he was replaced by Diego Costa in the starting lineup.
Costa’s a strong forward but nowhere near the level of striker that Forlán is. It all came to a head last week when QSF failed to back his striker after a poor game. When asked why he didn’t bring the player on earlier, he replied that he had over 30 minutes and did nothing. The result was an argument that stunned the dressing room, which mostly sided with the manager.
But nobody expected the manger to deny the man who almost single handedly dragged the team into the Champions League in 2009 and scored the winner in the Europa League final a chance to say good bye. Fans were divided when news broke. Nobody could have seen it coming.
A Love Divided
Social network sites divided into Team Forlán and Team Quique. What everyone wanted to know was what the reception would be like at the ground.
The Atlético Ultras, El Frente, were not divided.
They were Team Quique and they were determined to let everyone know. But, their chants were met with boos and whistling. The result, a 2-1 win, and the players whose futures had dominated the press pages only days ago were forgotten.
Atlético sealed a Europa League spot but no one seemed to notice. After the game fans stayed for 20 minutes to chant Quique’s name while a banner was lifted saying thanks for making the club winners again. In the press room an emotional Quique thanked the fans and apologised if anyone felt he had made any mistakes in the past week.
The rumour mill will go into overload with theories of why he dropped Forlán with Quique as of yet to give a real reason. His time at the club will be remembered but for exactly what only time can tell.
Around the Grounds
So with all the major honours sorted, the top scorer award ‘Pichichi’ is still up for grabs.
Ronaldo is ahead but by how many goals, isn’t so clear. Marca claim 39 on their front page whilst the other leading daily AS claims 38. Confused? We all are. But, no one can deny the season Ronaldo is having.
With only a relegated Almería left he is the bookies favourite for the award.
And whilst Ronaldo tries to win that award, Barca lifted the La Liga trophy and then threw red peppers at each other and fans. Rumoured to be for good luck and fortune Barca will now look to rest players for the Champions League final.
