Posted by Joseph Zucker

“Die, traitor Kun!” Those were the words splattered on a banner at the Vicente Calderón Stadium in Atletico’s Europa League 3rd round qualifying match against Strømsgodset. The vitriol was of course directed at Sergio Aguero after his very public move to Manchester City. It was quite the change in opinion about a player the Atleti faithful had idolized for many years. The situation resembled that of Fernando Torres, a former Atletico player himself, as he swapped Liverpool for Chelsea. Torres watched as he went from favorite of the Kop to turning on Sky Sports only to see his shirt burned by the same supporters who adored him only days prior.

The supporters were not alone in feeling betrayed by Aguero. Atleti President Enrique Cerezo told Spanish radio station Cadena COPE of the transfer saga, “(It) is a subject which is over and closed. Aguero had a buy-out clause and City paid it, though I still ask myself what we did for him to treat us like this.” Kun came over from Argentine club Independiente in 2006 for what is believe to be €23 million, the most Atletico has ever paid for a player. Seemingly ever since that moment, he has been adored by the Atleti supporters. That, of course, that is what made his departure the most difficult to take. The supporters feel Aguero has turned his back on the club, and is now public enemy No. 1. Granted, in hindsight, it certainly could have been handled much better by the Argentine, but the club was not left completely out in the cold. Now £38 million richer, they have been searching for his ways to reinvest the money. It appears that they could on the other side of the betrayal this time. Two footballers has made their intentions clear that they excited at the prospect of playing for Atletico Madrid. Of course, they would have to leave their current clubs to do so.

The first is Wolfsburg midfielder Diego. The 26-year-old Brazilian has made clear his intentions to German magazine Kicker, stating bluntly, “I don’t want to be in Wolfsburg any longer.” The club’s humbling loss to RB Leipzig in the 1st round of the DFB-Pokal might have only increased his wanting to leave. In the same Kicker interview, Diego said, “There is an official offer (from Atletico). We have had contact with other clubs, but Atletico is a concrete option.” Diego has been a target for many big European clubs this summer, but his massive wage demands, in the range of €4-4.5 million a year, have derailed any actual move. It now seems as though he may be willing to take a wage cut in order to facilitate a move. Should he move to Atletico, he would be a very good signing. He is the kind of playmaking central midfielder the club has lacked in recent years.

The other footballer to state his interest in Atleti is Real Sociedad winger Antoine Griezmann. Much like Diego, Griezmann has made his interest in coming to the Calderón very explicit, telling L’Equipe: “I [have] thought a lot about it. I [have] had time. I [have] chosen but it's my president [that] will decide. Atletico are a great club, very popular. I want to grow alongside players like Diego Forlan and Diego Costa.” Only 20 years old, Griezmann has been a member of Real Sociedad since 2005, and only signed his first professional contract in April 2010. Having had a breakout season at the San Sebastián, the Frenchman has re-evaluated his career path, and that means a move to a different club. He also said to L’Equipe, “I want to learn quickly, I dream of playing in the national side and I think a change of clubs would be the best decision to help me achieve that. (If you are) together with great players, you progress more quickly.” Griezmann also feels that Sociedad have broken an agreement with him in which the club would possibly look to change the winger’s role with the club. Instead, he claims they have not spoken to him in weeks, which has heightened his resolve to leave. Griezmann would be a fantastic signing for Atletico as the club has been looking for a winger to replace Simão, who left in the January window. This move is much less likely to happen as Sociedad’s management has made it clear they are in no hurry to sell Griezmann unless a fee close to his €30 million release clause is met. Either way, he has surely alienated the club’s supporters and his own teammates with his comments about a move to Atletico and put himself in an unenviable situation.

It’s almost funny to read these sagas unfold, as they are almost parallel to Aguero’s move away from Atleti. Of course, it’s not as if stories like these don’t pop up every transfer window. (Insert player here) publicly asserts his desire to transfer to (insert new club here). The interesting part is how one club and its supporters have so quickly gone from the spurned to the object of another’s desire. It is now when we see how fickle football supporters are. Atletico supporters vilify Sergio Aguero for making public how he wanted to leave the club, and in turn are willing to welcome with open arms two players who are doing the exact same to their own clubs. It is of little concern that supporters of Wolfsburg and Real Sociedad are left in almost the exact same situation in which Atletico was left. The only real difference is that Aguero’s standing with Atleti supporters was much higher than that of either Diego or Griezmann. The change of heart is certainly nothing unique to Atleti supporters. It happens at every club across the world, the whole “If you’re not with us, you’re against us” mentality. It’s all a vicious circle really.

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