Atletico won the title again, their second under Diego Simeone and their first since 2013/14. It was a very different squad to their last title, with current captain Koke and Jose Maria Gimenez the only two present in both.
It’s thanks to their first half of the campaign that Atletico won this. They took 50 points from their first 19 games, a club record. They dropped a lot more points in the second half of the season, but held on with three 2-1 wins to close out the season.
As always, Jan Oblak was key to Atletico’s success. He has won his fifth Zamora Trophy as the goalkeeper with the best defensive record. But, having a clinical finisher like Luis Suarez in the other box made a difference too.
If there was one weakness in this Atletico squad then it was depth, as they struggled when Suarez had a spell out injured and when Kieran Trippier spent 10 weeks suspended. Early Copa del Rey and Champions League exits probably helped, then.
Simeone got the most out of a squad that isn’t as deep as Barcelona’s or Real Madrid’s. Simeone also evolved tactically this season, often using a 3-5-2 system instead of the 4-4-2 he’d religiously stuck to in years gone by.
Atletico are in a good position to compete again next year, although Luis Suarez will be a year older and Barcelona and Real Madrid should both be stronger.
