Elche - Atletico Madrid: Atletico at a crossroads

“Life is about stumbling and growing. We will come back,” Antoine Griezmann said after Atletico Madrid lost to Real Sociedad in the penalty shootout of the Copa del Rey final.

This is the third time since Diego Simeone arrived in Madrid that his team has lost a final via penalty shootouts. The previous two defeats were against Real Madrid: one in the 2016 Champions League final, witnessed by Griezmann, and another in the 2020 Spanish Super Cup final.

The season could end in a very bitter way for the Rojiblancos. They dramatically overcame Barcelona in the Copa del Rey and later in the Champions League, but they may likely end up without any trophy. The Rojiblancos seem to bear a heavy curse in cup matches.

The defeat in the Copa del Rey final greatly impacted the team's morale, as they were determined to win their first title since the 2021 La Liga championship, and also to gain momentum before hosting Arsenal at the Metropolitano in the Champions League semifinal first leg next week.

The European arena is the ultimate goal that the Argentine strategist and his pupils await, following the heavy defeats in 2014 and 2016. Never has the path to the final been so wide open for a squad not overly rated in quality and class.

And the loss to Sociedad delivered a heavy blow to the players' psychology. Simeone's team needs to bounce back as quickly as possible, but Elche is also an unpleasant challenge, considering the Rojiblancos' lack of focus in La Liga.

Simeone needs to change the players' mindset because before the Copa del Rey final, everything seemed to be going well, but the red-and-white striped team has lost six of their last seven matches.

Some defeats involved playing with four academy youngsters, but ultimately the team needs to return to a winning streak to try conquering a tournament that has brought about 100 million euros and could potentially yield at least 30 million euros more.

Not only under pressure from psychological strain and declining form in La Liga, the Argentine strategist also suffers personnel losses as two stars, Ademola Lookman and Alexander Sorloth, are injured and uncertain for the match against Arsenal.

On the other hand, having played 27 matches since the start of 2026, at least two more than Real and Barcelona, has severely depleted the players' physical condition, posing a major challenge for Simeone.

He is likely to continue rotating the squad in the two matches against Elche and Athletic Bilbao, before launching another assault on Atletico's ultimate dream and the Argentine coach's obsession: the Champions League.

“I am not thinking about Arsenal,” Simeone declared before the match against Elche. Despite the usual one-match-at-a-time approach, everyone understands his ultimate goal is the Champions League. But without winning against Elche and then Bilbao, all preparations are futile for Atletico.