Copa Del Ray: Athletic Club knocks Barcelona out to reach semis
It was another disappointment for Barcelona, as the club was expecting to go to the Copa del Rey semifinals for the second straight season.
As per teammate Saul Niguez, Diego Costa’s form could be very crucial for Atletico Madrid, even more important than the form of their eight newcomers.
And if Saul’s comments are true, it could be good news for Atletico Madrid as Costa has five pre-season goals already. This includes four goals in the match against Real Madrid where they thrashed rivals Madrid by a stunning scoreline of 7-3.
Notably, Costa managed to play in just 16 La Liga games in the previous seasons owing to injuries, Alvaro Morata’s entry in the club and eight-game ban which he was given for insulting a referee.
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Although he is yet to serve a ban of one more match from that suspension, he is expected to have a good season nonetheless, after a couple of average seasons.
“Diego looks great to me,” Spanish midfield player Saul told Spanish radio station COPE.
“I love it when he’s like this, [because his attitude is] infectious. He’s a player we need at all times.
“I love that he defends his team-mates as he did against Madrid, that he fights for the shirt and I think that if Diego Costa is at his best level he will be the best signing we have.” He added.
Now with Antoine Griezmann, who was their star performer in the past, no longer with the team, Costa’s performance becomes all the more crucial.
Here is a statistic to highlight Griezmann’s importance to the team- Griezmann scored no less than fifteen goals any of the five La Liga seasons that he featured in for the club
Although it was expected that he would join Barcelona, Saul confessed that he was surprised when it indeed happen.
“I was surprised,” the 24-year-old midfielder said. “He was a very important player and for him to leave is difficult. Atleti is above any player and when he wore the shirt there was nothing to reproach him for.”
“He may not have left in the best way but we shouldn’t crush him either.” He added.
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