Atletico de Madrid vs Las Palmas - Diego Simeone's full attention is on Atletico Madrid defeating Las Palmas

Posted Saturday, December 17, 2016 by PA

Diego Simeone and his Atletico Madrid players are fully focused on beating Las Palmas rather than worrying about their alarming three-match winless streak.

Last season's Champions League finalists surprisingly enter the weekend sixth in the LaLiga standings, already 12 points behind rivals Real Madrid at the top.

It means Atletico's title dreams are all but just 15 matches into the season, with the 3-0 loss at Villarreal last time out compounding a goalless home draw with Espanyol.

Those results came in between a 1-0 defeat at Bayern Munich in the Champions League, with manager Simeone determined to get back to winning ways on Saturday at the Vicente Calderon Stadium.

"We only think about one thing, which is the match against Las Palmas," the Atletico manager said ahead of Saturday's contest.

"We think about reaching the goals that we set at the beginning of the season and for that we have to work. Work when the results are good and work when the results are bad. The only way of finding the best situations is by working.

"I am only interested in winning. I am only interested in that the team responds emotionally to what we always were and will be.

"We will focus on playing against a team that plays very well.

"Las Palmas is a team that players a dangerous football between the lines. They're not afraid and that makes them brave against any kind of rival.

"We will have to watch out because they're a team that players very well."

Atletico B midfielder Juan Moreno part of the 18-man squad that Angel Correa, Jan Oblak, Augusto Fernandez, Alessio Cerci, Tiago and Filipe Luis are absent from.

Las Palmas are without David Garcia through suspension, while Kevin-Prince Boateng and Sergio Araujo are injured for the trip to the capital.

Dani Castellano returns to the fold as coach Quique Setien looks to further frustrate the club he used to played for.

"I had a great playing career at Atletico Madrid," the Las Palmas boss said. "It is not easy to get out of a situation such as the one they are going through.

"But Atletico Madrid are a team with such great potential and such superb players such as (Antoine) Griezmann, (Kevin) Gameiro and (Yannick Ferreira) Carrasco, who play brilliantly every weekend.

"They now urgently require a victory to pull themselves out of their bad run.

"We need to play intelligently and to keep the ball, because we are facing the team that covers the most ground in the league."