Atletico Madrid on the charge

Say it quietly, but Atlético Madrid could well be a force to be reckoned with as we enter the business end of the season, and it might even yield a trophy or two. The last few weeks (let's pretend that miserable defeat to Almeria never happened) have seen the men from the Vicente Calderon sweep aside one of the finest Barcelona sides La Liga has ever seen; leave the footballing equivalent of hell with a stunning win that has them among the favourites for the UEFA Europa League; and they have just thrashed a Valencia team that have been the best of the rest as Real Madrid and Barca negotiate their own personal battle at the top.

Much credit has to go to Quique Sanchez Flores, who inherited an absolute mess, but has turned it around in only four months. He has instilled confidence into a squad that was on its knees, through sheer hard work on the training pitch and if Marca is to be believed, through borrowing some famous words by Al Pacino in 'Any Given Sunday'. The victory against Barcelona could easily have been put down to the famous Jekyl and Hyde nature of this enigmatic football club, but the manner in which they knocked out Galatasaray in the fearsome Ali Yemi Sen Stadium, and then systematically dismantled a rejuvenated Valencia (it could so easily have been 7 or 8 that day), shows that Atlético mean business.

Jose Antonio Reyes has also been instrumental in this upsurge (again this has to be down to Quique who nurtured Reyes back to form at Benfica last year), with some sparkling performances on the wing, which has helped Diego Forlán and Sergio Agüero to finally rediscover their midas touch infront of goal. Winter signing Tiago has been a revelation in the middle of the park, which has also taken some pressure off Raul Garcia and Assuncao. Bar the odd mishap, Perea and Tomas Ujfalusi might just be getting the knack of defending at the highest level, and David De Gea is beginning to prove he could well be the succesor to Iker Casillas' throne. Quique has grumbled about his sides fixture congestion, but it might well be that 17 matches in only two months has galvanised his team; they've simply had nowhere to hide and have come out fighting.

They look more solid as a unit, and whilst we all knew what Forlan, Agüero, Jurado, Reyes and Simao were capable of, they are finally beginning to gel, as nine goals in their last four matches would suggest. Atlético still need to eradicate silly laps of concentration at the back and to motivate themselves for all matches and not just those against champagne opposition. But if they manage to ride this wave of good form into May, they can look forward to the Copa del Rey final, the Europe League run-in and a push for the UEFA spots in La Liga with renewed optimism. They could win or they could lose: but will they win or lose like men? Only time will tell.