Simeone's Atletico face early Real reckoning in Madrid derby | Sports

MADRID, Sept 26, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone famously hates to deviate from the here and now but when his team host Real Madrid on Saturday in a La Liga derby clash it is difficult not to look both forwards and backwards. The last time these teams met was in March in the Champions League last 16, when Atletico were eliminated after Julian Alvarez's controversially disallowed shoot-out penalty. The Rojiblancos seethed for weeks about the incident, with Alvarez ruled to have double-kicked the ball, and their season rapidly flew off the rails. Perhaps they have never fully recovered since. Atletico arrive at the Madrid derby, six games into the season, already trailing their league-leading opponents by nine...