Alright folks, buckle up ’cause today was another one of those “thinking I know football better than the managers” kind of days. Decided to take a crack at guessing the lineups for Atletico Madrid vs Valencia. Let me tell ya how this messy puzzle unfolded.
Starting with the Usual Chaos
First things first, I grabbed my laptop, opened like fifty browser tabs – bad habit, I know. Searched for recent news on both teams. My main goal? Finding out who’s hurt and who got those nasty yellow cards piling up.
What I actually did:
- Clicked through about ten different websites claiming “exclusive insider info.” Mostly trash, honestly.
- Saw some rumour about a Valencia player maybe being rested. Bookmarked that tab. Totally forgot where it was five minutes later.
- Checked Atletico’s official social media. Nada. Just hype videos. Useless.
The Spreadsheet Disaster
Okay, time to get “organized.” Opened my ancient spreadsheet. Tried coloring players red if injured and yellow if maybe suspended. Looked like a toddler’s art project by the end. Realized I misspelled half the names. Whoops.
Embarrassing moments:
- Called Gabriel Paulista “Gabriel Paulitsa.” Yeah, not my finest.
- Forgot completely about that defender who got sent off last game for Valencia. Oops. Had to start that section over.
- Spilled coffee. Not a lot, just enough to panic wipe my keyboard.
Trying to Think Like the Gaffer
This is where it gets fuzzy. Stared into space, pretending I’m Diego Simeone, trying to figure out his mind games. Does he stick with old reliable? Or throw a curveball? My cat chose that exact moment to step on my keyboard, deleting my “genius prediction.”
The Mental Gymnastics:
- Simeone always loves grit. Gotta put Koke in there, right? Slapped his name down first.
- Valencia… honestly, harder to guess. Their manager seems unpredictable. Went with safe bets.
- Got stuck on whether Griezmann plays deeper again. Argued with myself about it for ten minutes. My brain lost.
The “Final” Guess (Heavy on the Quotes)
Okay, after way too long, here’s the pile of guesses I ended up with:
Atletico Madrid Guess:
- Oblak (No-brainer, right?)
- Witsel, Hermoso, Savic at the back? Maybe.
- Midfield… Koke, De Paul, Llorente? Felt shaky putting that down.
- Up front: Morata and Griezmann. Praying they both start.
Valencia CF Guess:
- Mamardashvili in goal. Pretty sure.
- Defense felt like a lottery. Went with Paulista (Paulitsa corrected!), Diakhaby, Foulquier?
- Midfield gambled: Pepelu, Guerra, Javi Guerra? Getting a headache…
- Strikers: Duro and Lopez. Just went with recent starters.
Honestly? Smacked my head realizing halfway that I forgot about Atletico probably playing 4-4-2 again. Had to go back and reshuffle names like a card game. Ended the whole thing feeling less confident than when I started. But hey, that’s the “fun” of guessing football lineups! Time to brew another coffee and wait to see how wrong I was.
