Atletico Madrid’s 1-nil win at home against Espanyol wasn’t as sweet as a routine home win usually is despite the fact that they close the gap between them and Barcelona down to 4 points. That is because one of their most influential midfielders, Tiago was stretchered off the pitch with a fractured leg. There is no time frame for his return yet and Diego Simeone might have to fish for a CDM in the January transfer window.
Let’s take a look at some of the players he should consider.
Alex Song
He is currently on loan at West Ham and signing him will mean Barcelona will 1st have to terminate his loan and then sell him to Atletico. Which is tricky and cumbersome in itself even without considering the fact that Barcelona will not want to strengthen their direct title rivals.
Alex Song is a very good player and I think if Atletico do find a way to make things work, he will be a good signing. Tiago himself is 34years old. So there will be question marks over whether or not he will be back to his best when he returns. Perhaps Diego will look to replace him for good?
 Esteban Cambiasso
The 35year old veteran surprised everybody with his performances for Leicester last season which saw him pick up the Leicester Fans player of the year award. He is not young, but he has a LOT of top level experience. Besides, he currently is in Greece playing for Olympiakos. Surely a return to Spain with Atletico has to be a tempting proposition?
Nigel De Jong
The former Man City midfielder is a fine CDM. I actually wanted him to join Arsenal a couple of seasons ago but he ended up joining Milan.
He has signed a contract extension in summer but as we know, contract extensions don’t mean much in football these days.
Another player who signed a contract extension in the summer. He will be a lot harder to sign primarily because he is a Frenchman playing in the French league in the twilight of his career. Won’t be easy to tempt him away from Monaco.
However he has played in La Liga not very long ago and knows the league well. That is an important thing to look at when you’re trying to sign a cover for key player in January. If you can spot somebody who knows the league and can fit into your system, then that should make you want to try hard to sign him because he will start performing immediately.
Gokhan Inler
I could scarcely believe when Leicester City snapped him up in summer. In my opinion he is a top quality midfielder. What is baffling is, he has only made 3 appearances for the Foxes.
But how can he complain? Kante and Drinkwater have been absolute revelations in midfield and Leicester are on the top of the league table. Ranieri’s decision might have seemed questionable at 1st. But it has paid off.
All of this means that Inler will surely be looking for a loan move (at the very least) to move away from the ‘King Power Stadium’ and get some game time under his belt ahead of the European championships. Absolutely Perfect for Simeone.
A top quality player who is eager to move and hungry to play.
What more could you ask for? SIGN HIM UP!!
