Atletico Madrid

Add another zero to Antoine Griezmann’s transfer fee. After the Atletico Madrid forward leads France to 2018 World Cup glory while winning the tournament’s Golden Boot, he will now cost either Barcelona, Manchester United or PSG roughly sixty-eight trillion dollars. 

It’s a princely sum to pay, but as showcased here and on the evidence of last five years of European football, it’s totally worth it. The Greasy Spice is the man your club needs, the man your father wishes you were and the boyfriend everyone wishes they had. 

With only nine matches remaining in the 2017-18 Primera Division Femenina, Sunday’s meeting between Atletico Madrid and Barcelona will likely decide the title. The two sides have rarely been troubled by the rest of the division, and they’ve distanced themselves at the top of the table, where Atletico hold a one-point advantage over Barca.

You can read about the Sevilla-Atletico Madrid Copa del Rey tie on just about any soccer website in existence, but it is only HERE AT THE18 that you can read a full breakdown on Sergio Escudero's first-minute volley goal vs. Antoine Griezmann's 13th-minute volley goal.

So.

Escudero:

Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Miguel Ángel Moyà had himself one helluva first half. The second-choice keeper behind Jan Oblak kept the first half scoreless with an incredible save on Sevilla’s Sergio Escudero during their Copa del Rey quarterfinal first leg. But the Atletico Madrid vs Sevilla match turned when a Moyà howler helped propel the visitors to a 2-1 victory in Spain’s capital city on Wednesday, Atleti’s first loss to a Spanish side at the new Wanda.

Oh Diego, how we missed you. Diego Costa made his long-awaited return to La Liga on Saturday as Atletico Madrid hosted Getafe at the Wanda Metropolitano. After the mercurial striker scored five minutes into his return with Atletico on Wednesday in the Copa del Rey, Costa had six more minutes of madness that perfectly encapsulate the best and worst he has to offer.

Atletico Madrid gave themselves an unassailable four-goal advantage heading back to Madrid for the second leg of their Copa del Rey Round of 16 encounter with third division side Lleida Esportiu on Wednesday. Diego Godin and Fernando Torres opened the scoring in the first half, and then Lleida had to contend with second half substitute appearances from both Diego Costa and Antoine Griezmann, both furthering Los Colchoneros’ advantage.

On Saturday, match week 17 in La Liga will boil down to one match and one match only: the El Clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona at the Santiago Bernabeu. Though Barcelona dares not think about losing the world’s greatest rivalry game, manager Ernesto Valverde is obviously correct in saying, “I don’t think a Clasico victory will give us the title.”