Marked for Jasper Cillessen
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad27 Sep 2027
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Match25 Sep 2027
4 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Squad27 Sep 2027
Jason Knight was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Player ratings27 Sep 2027
Successful dribbles: 21. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad27 Sep 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Sékou Gassama, and the manager let it.
Player ratings27 Sep 2027
A performance of 8.77 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings27 Sep 2027
A performance of 8.55 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Match25 Sep 2027
2‑2, and both dressing rooms will call it two points lost. A draw that asked plenty of questions and answered none of them.
The terraces27 Sep 2027
Every touch is being weighed now, in print and everywhere else. Some players grow into that and some are quietly ruined by it, and nobody knows which in advance.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad6 Sep 2027
There were 7 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Market6 Sep 2027
Brentford come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and Bristol City did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Match4 Sep 2027
The unbeaten run reaches 8. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad6 Sep 2027
Max Bird was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad6 Sep 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Leon Chiwome and Bristol City agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad6 Sep 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings6 Sep 2027
A performance of 8.62 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings6 Sep 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.34, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Match4 Sep 2027
A 3‑3 draw with Preston leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad16 Aug 2027
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Bristol City know it.
Squad16 Aug 2027
Jason Knight was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Market16 Aug 2027
Illan Wood has left for Reading in a $430.0K deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.
Player ratings16 Aug 2027
A performance of 8.95 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad16 Aug 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings16 Aug 2027
Successful dribbles: 15. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Match14 Aug 2027
It needed Jason Knight to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Wolverhampton, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
Squad16 Aug 2027
Max Bird knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Bristol City, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Market16 Aug 2027
The Jason Knight story refuses to die
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Jason Knight signs something — a contract at Bristol City or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad12 Jul 2027
Jason Knight in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Bristol City this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad12 Jul 2027
He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at Bristol City has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.
Squad12 Jul 2027
Somebody is after Luke McNally’s shirt
A new face in his position, and Luke McNally suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Bristol City have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market14 Jun 2027
Joe Lumley has left for Birmingham in a $1.2M deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.
Squad14 Jun 2027
Max Bird was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad14 Jun 2027
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Leon Chiwome and Bristol City agree another 4 years.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad17 May 2027
Jan Oblak was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad17 May 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Jasper Cillessen, and the manager let it.
Squad17 May 2027
Marc Pubill asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings29 Mar 2027
Defensive actions: 38, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad29 Mar 2027
14 goals and a season average of 7.87. Form like that gets noticed well beyond this town.
Match29 Mar 2027
Position 3 and 65 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.
Match27 Mar 2027
The unbeaten run reaches 11. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad29 Mar 2027
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Squad29 Mar 2027
Pablo Barrios was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Player ratings29 Mar 2027
Marked 9.45 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Player ratings29 Mar 2027
A performance of 9.24 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings29 Mar 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.83, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings22 Mar 2027
Defensive actions: 33. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Defences have started doubling up on Álex Baena
13 goals and a season average of 7.83 will do that. The space he used to find has gone; he keeps scoring anyway, which is the mark of the real thing.
Match20 Mar 2027
The unbeaten run reaches 10. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad22 Mar 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Atlético Madrid this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings22 Mar 2027
A performance of 9.55 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Match20 Mar 2027
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Johnny Cardoso. 1‑0 against Oviedo, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Player ratings22 Mar 2027
Óliver runs at them all day
Successful dribbles: 18. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad22 Mar 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Jasper Cillessen, and the manager let it.
Player ratings22 Mar 2027
The one thing Álex Baena could not do
Shots: 8, enough of them from close enough that a striker in form scores two. He is not a striker in form.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market8 Mar 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Atlético Madrid, and it is not being withdrawn.
Boardroom8 Mar 2027
Nothing has been signed and nothing has been denied. Supporters who have lived through one of these before know the quiet part lasts months and the loud part lasts a week.
Match6 Mar 2027
The unbeaten run reaches 8. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad8 Mar 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Atlético Madrid this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad8 Mar 2027
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Óscar Mingueza commits to Atlético Madrid for another 4 years.
Player ratings8 Mar 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.39, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings8 Mar 2027
Marked 9.14 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Match6 Mar 2027
A 2‑1 win over Villarreal, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Squad8 Mar 2027
Defences have started doubling up on Julián Álvarez
7 goals and a season average of 7.40 will do that. The space he used to find has gone; he keeps scoring anyway, which is the mark of the real thing.
From our football correspondent
Triumph
Match10 Oct 2026
Momentum is a hard thing to buy and an easy thing to lose, and right now Atlético Madrid have 4 straight wins of it.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Julián Álvarez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Match10 Oct 2026
A 3‑2 win over Alavés, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Player ratings12 Oct 2026
Marked 9.39 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Player ratings12 Oct 2026
One of those days for Álex Baena
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.27, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings12 Oct 2026
One of those days for Koke
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.08, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Álex Baena is in the form of his life
A season average of 7.51 with 5 goals behind it. Opponents have started planning around him, which is the sincerest compliment football pays.
Squad12 Oct 2026
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Atlético Madrid know it.
Squad12 Oct 2026
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Juan Musso knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
From our football correspondent
Triumph
Player ratings5 Oct 2026
There are goals, and then there are goals against that particular opponent. The Atlético Madrid support have their bragging rights for a year and they know exactly whose name is on them.
Squad5 Oct 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Atlético Madrid this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match3 Oct 2026
Momentum is a hard thing to buy and an easy thing to lose, and right now Atlético Madrid have 3 straight wins of it.
Boardroom5 Oct 2026
Wages eat 202% of everything Atlético Madrid earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
Squad5 Oct 2026
4 goals and a season average of 7.41. Form like that gets noticed well beyond this town.
Squad5 Oct 2026
The month belongs to Álex Baena
The award is a small thing with a heavy meaning: for four weeks nobody in this division did his job better. Atlético Madrid have the trophy on a shelf and the player in the side.
Boardroom5 Oct 2026
Atlético Madrid release $11.3M for the manager
The board have put money on the table rather than an encouraging word. What happens to it now is somebody else's problem, and somebody else's job.
Player ratings5 Oct 2026
Successful dribbles: 14. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad17 Aug 2026
Julián Álvarez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Market17 Aug 2026
He is 16, and nobody at Atlético Madrid signed him for this season. Deals like this are judged in four years, by people who may not still be in the building.
Market17 Aug 2026
He is 16, and the scouting reports agree on the only line that matters: the ceiling. Signings like this are lottery tickets written by professionals.
Market17 Aug 2026
Leo Carrasco is 16, and Atlético Madrid have signed him for the player he will be rather than the one he is. The first team can wait; the point of a deal like this is the years it buys.
The terraces17 Aug 2026
Everybody has an opinion about Óscar Mingueza
He is the name in every column and on every phone-in, which is a heavy thing to carry at any age. Some footballers thrive on it; others are quietly finished by it.
Squad17 Aug 2026
A new face in his position, and Alejandro Grimaldo suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Atlético Madrid have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Miguel Merentiel has done the arithmetic and does not like the answer. Nothing corrodes a squad faster, and no club has ever solved it by explaining the wage structure to a footballer.
Squad17 Aug 2026
He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at Atlético Madrid has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market10 Aug 2026
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market10 Aug 2026
“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Atlético Madrid heard it as anything else.
Squad10 Aug 2026
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Julián Álvarez and Atlético Madrid agree another 5 years.
Squad10 Aug 2026
Julián Álvarez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Market10 Aug 2026
Still no offer on the table, and Marcos Llorente’s deal keeps shrinking. In boardroom language, silence this long stops being an oversight and starts being an answer.