In a soccer world where the few financial juggernauts dominate the league titles, Atletico Madrid has refused to be defeated by their richer European rivals. With a budget of a mere 89 million pounds, they have come up near the top in La Liga, where other teams such as Real Madrid have significantly higher war chests (500 million pounds). On Tuesday they will play Chelsea who has a budget of 250 million pounds, and for Atletico to play their star goalkeeper Courtois (Chelsea loanee) they would have to play their opponents 6 million pounds, money they can’t spare. Atletico continues to be bullied by richer opponents, but somehow comes out on top despite this all, with the latest being Chelsea, who doesn’t need the 6 million pounds like Madrid does, still a formidable foe. Amazingly, Atletico is also La Liga’s champions, beating out both Real Madrid and Barcelona, with the latter being so wealthy they could afford the massive millions it took to lure Neymar to their already all-star team. Perhaps there will be a new breed of managers who focus more on keeping players for the long-term than purchasing already big name individuals.
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/how-atletico-madrid-produced-a-miracle-on-a-shoestring-9271523.html