Atletico Madrid 0-0 Celta Vigo: 3 Players who were impressive for the Los Rojiblancos and 2 who weren't | La Liga 2019/20

#1 Renan Lodi – Impressive

Lodi was brilliant against Celta Vigo

Renan Lodi was plucked from the obscurity of Brazilian football in the 2019 off-season and was immediately entrusted with replacing his countryman, Filipe Luis at left-back.

Unsurprisingly, quite a few were left stunned by Simeone’s insistence on acquiring a full-back with no experience in Europe, a question magnified by the consistency Lodi’s predecessor accorded the side.

However, over the course of the opening few weeks, the decision to bring the Brazilian on board, seems an extremely shrewd one, considering the defender’s age and talent.

Against Celta, Lodi conjured arguably his best performance in an Atletico Madrid shirt. The full-back put in a massive shift, stuck to his defensive job and more importantly, provided the hosts with an offensive thrust on the left wing.

On countless occasions, the Brazilian ventured forward and Atletico were intent to switch the play quickly, thus, pointing towards a pre-conceived plan where Simeone’s men looked to utilise his pace optimally.

After foraying forward, Lodi whipped in numerous exquisite crosses and it was a pity that none of the hosts’ forwards got on the end of them. Apart from the crosses, the full-back stung the palms of Ruben Blanco in the first half, where the keeper had to come up with an exceptional save.

In the summer, Atletico underwent a massive overhaul wherein several of their lynchpins departed for newer pastures. Subsequently, the Los Rojiblancos dipped into the market and signed players they felt were most suitable to fill the void.

The nature of those signings though, hinted towards a miniscule change in approach. The arrival of Felix, Lodi and Trippier meant that Atletico were willing to become a shade more expansive as they hoped to challenge on all fronts.

And, with Lodi pulling out such marauding performances at full-back, maybe Simeone might be able to implement that philosophy, much sooner than he would’ve expected.