Joao Felix: The new Golden Boy at Atletico Madrid
Atletico Madrid has never spent nine figures on a single player, but losing a certain Frenchman demands spending outrageous sums of money. Overloaded with options, Atleti had two options: Spend smartly or add one superstar. Instead, they went with option three and introduced the world to Joao Felix.
Joao Felix’s life has gotten all sorts of complicated this summer, with Atletico Madrid expecting big things from their first hundred million investment. A stupendous risk but given the young man’s talent, some may say it was inevitable. But in doing that, Atletico Madrid have heaped the pressure on an untested Portuguese teen whose name is not Cristiano Ronaldo.
Few have survived the initial hype of being called the next great Portuguese thing, with Andre Silva and Renato Sanches being notable casualties. But for Felix, pressure has become second nature. He’s had hoops to jump for most of his career, and that changes a person. Not just physically but mentally as well, with the young teen maturing along the way.
His time, however, starts at Benfica.
A move after being rejected by Porto and Felix made it work, hurdling any issues. Only then did the fireworks start as he seamlessly slotted at Benfica. Hard work for anyone else, but one that the teen made look effortless despite an initial struggle. That spell proved his mettle as he waited patiently for a chance, which eventually arrived under Bruno Lage.
Lage, the former youth coach, knew just how talented Felix was. But more importantly, he gave him a chance, to show the world. Felix thrived and Lage smiled because it’s why he put his faith in the teen and Benfica reaped the benefits. That meteoric rise was capped by Atletico when they made Felix their first mega move and it might not be over.
A phenomenal amount of money to spend on a teenager, but the situation demanded it. There may have been another way to go about things but clearly, Atleti wanted a statement. One that shocked the world, just because it was Atletico Madrid spending the money. And that is exactly what happened because few expected it to happen.
Because losing a superstar changes a team.
It leaves a gap to be plugged and with Diego Simeone going nowhere, they had to move. Amid the revolving door of managers, El Cholo might just be Atleti’s answer to Arsene Wenger. The man, Atletico Madrid will remember even if the Felix experiment fails miserably. But it has come at a steep price. It cost him heavily and made creative stars scared of making the move.
More importantly, creative stars from Portugal have struggled the most under EL Cholo over the years. And now wake of them litters his path to glory. It started with Jackson Martinez, moves on to Nico Gaitan, ending with Gelson Martins and hopefully as Atletico prays, not Joao Felix. It’s the one list that will haunt Joao Felix, become his nightmare but yet at the same time be the one thing pushing him to succeed.
Not just under Simeone’s iron fist but at Atletico Madrid, in the same town where his idol shone so brightly less than 15 km away. It’s a big task for a young teenager to embark upon but nobody said it would be easy. The face of Atleti’s new revolution, replacing a prolific Frenchman and the pressure will naturally be immense. But he is the golden boy now, not Antoine Griezmann, Saul Niguez or Thomas Lemar.
It’s Joao Felix.
And his job has not been made any easier by the mass exodus at the Wanda Metropolitano. Diego Simeone might never ever leave but clearly, that doesn’t apply to the first-team with half the core leaving over the last two seasons. It's a stunning list, one that includes Griezmann, Diego Godin, Juanfran, Filipe Luis and even Rodri, all left for something new.
Yet even for a group as undisturbed by the multi-billion euro business that is the transfer market, this change will be a sucker punch. Adjusting to that is not easy and new attractions will not help, only time will heal those wounds. But to hasten that procedure falls upon Joao Felix.
He’s the golden kid, the main attraction.
The poster child of the new Atletico Madrid, Felix will have the hopes of a city weighing down on his shoulders and that pressure will be immense. Not just because of the man who filled his role before him or the price tag that hangs over his head but because of the revolution he leads. A brand new Atletico Madrid is on its way next season but even then there is still El Cholo and his black book of tactics.
The only constant figure amid the better part of the last decade, it doesn’t look like he’s going anywhere. It’s against who Felix’s biggest fight will be and Simeone has his preferred everything. But that doesn’t affect this piece. What does is how Felix fits into that system, which is a simple use of common sense. It won’t happen immediately or even a few months into the season, but as Klopp help integrate Fabinho at Liverpool, Simeone will do the same with Felix.
Because two things are on the line right now and both affect El Cholo. The first is Felix, the second is Simeone and both their paths are wound tighter than a double helix. Because if their golden boy succeeds, then that changes everything for Atletico and Diego Simeone. The fact is him succeeding will make Atleti a superpower. Not as big as the duopoly in Spain but a side that’s rapidly closing in.
The market plays a big role in that but Joao Felix has an even bigger one. He paves the way for Atletico Madrid’s future, showing them just how to make the most of everything El Cholo has to offer. And that change for Atletico Madrid would be nice to see, but will it affect the La Liga? Only time will tell.
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