Manual on how to anesthetize a beast: the hot notes of the Atlético de Madrid - Barça

BarcelonaVery important victory for Barça at the Metropolitano. After a comeback thanks to two goals from Fermín (1-2). Below, a few hot takes.

How much is Fermín worth now?Not that long ago, Chelsea burst onto the scene in the final days of a transfer window to take him away. The first offer was 40 million. Barça did not completely close the door to negotiations because they needed the money, but the Andalusian said he was not leaving even though he had gone through a turbulent summer in the dressing room. A year and a bit later, Fermín is the highest-scoring midfielder in La Liga. And that is even though he is not an undisputed starter, since Olmo (when not injured) shares the attacking midfield role with him. He is pure dynamite, a lethal finisher with both feet, and a true greyhound in the press. Those 40 million today are a joke. 80, too.

Bernal, from less to more. Many applauded that it was him and not De Jong who filled the void of the injured Rodri, but the performance he offered at first was lackluster. What in Spain is known as trot pigsty was too common in the first staging of the Berguedà native, who in the second half, with the support of De Jong in the exit, improved. Bernal has foundations to be a dominant midfielder, but it is not quite clear which foot he kicks with. It is not known if he is a box to box, a positional pivot or an interior player with arrival. This season, if he has more continuity, it remains to be seen where he will finally break through.

The first half of Barça. The game changed radically with the arrival of De Jong, who first occupied the full-back position and later moved to the pivot. The Dutchman is not very popular among many Barcelona fans, but all coaches believe in him without exception. Furthermore, since returning from injury, whenever he has appeared, it has only been to contribute positive things in various positions. However, if there is one key footballer in the all-important triumph at the Metropolitano, it is Pedri. Exhausting Simeone's soldiers to the point of helplessness is largely the responsibility of this privileged kid who sees football half a second before his rivals. He is half of Barça.