Diego Simeone: The Ideal Replacement For Pellegrini?

Over the last couple of weeks, there has been a great buzz around the footballing world. That buzz surrounds Argentine manager Diego Simeone. The current Atlético Madrid manager has become a coveted man around Europe as a result of the revival of Atletico that he has commanded. Without the biggest budget, Diego Simeone has revitalized a once depleted Colchoneros side that is now equal to Barcelona and Real Madrid since his arrival in December 2011. The Mirror reports that Diego Simeone is quite interested in becoming the next City manager. This is what has driven him to not re-sign with Atletico and quietly ponder his future as the world pays close attention. This will become a prime topic of discussion amongst football fans, will he stay in Madrid or pack his bags and go to England? This speculation is quite good for City fans for many different reasons:

Revitalization of Players: Diego Simeone arrived at the Vicente Calderon in December 2011, and at this time, the team was in a rut. The club had just sacked Gregorio Manzano after successive defeats to Betis in La Liga and a 1-0 Copa del Rey home upset to Albacete. Atletico was promptly eliminated by Albacete. After Diego Simeone arrived, the club turned around. From roaming in the mid table, the team quickly made waves by playing improved and attractive football. Radamel Falcao found the back of the net more often and the team finished in 5th place. This was coupled with a Europa League title, after Atletico Madrid defeated Athletic Bilbao 3-0 in Bucharest. This is what City desperately needs at the moment, someone that can come in and reinvigorate a depleted and unmotivated side.

Transfer Budget/Charge for Title: With the players City has at its current disposal, Diego Simeone would fit in perfectly with the club. Diego Simeone was able to carve out a La Liga title and Champions League final appearance with an Atletico Madrid side that had quite a considerably smaller budget than City. While City has around an excess of £150 million allocated every summer for signings, Atletico has had to battle for money as their £84 million debt has closed the door on the potential big budget for a transfer window. This "thrift" that Diego Simeone has dealt well with has seen him catapult himself as one of Europe's premier managers and has demonstrated that money does not always win out. This would not be the case if he signed for City, because he would have the money to charge for a Premier League title. His arrival would give City new fortune, because if he was able to win and succeed on a budget, than he certainly could win with the quality and money of City.

Tactics: In the recent Madrid derby, Diego Simeone played a 4-4-2, a formation that Pellegrini has used throughout the season. With this formation and with the players he had, he was able to come out with the staggering 4-0 thrashing. Sure, Real Madrid did not have Marcelo, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Luka Modrić or James Rodriguez, but to beat Real Madrid 4-0 in any context is still a massive achievement nonetheless. With the result in mind, it begs the question about why City cannot gel themselves in the 4-4-2 with the star power they have in each position. City played poorly against Barcelona and Liverpool using the 4-4-2. Simeone played a team that maintained its structure, and this was the main reason why Atletico Madrid's win was so emphatic. This is the structure that City has lacked recently, and is what is causing the title to become out of reach with the recurrent bad results. If Simeone can bring this tactical structure, City will return to the success of winning Premier League titles, as well as become a more serious contender in Europe.

Will he sign for City? The lure of joining a top club will weigh heavily on Simeone's mind. What will also weigh heavily on Simeone will be staying with the faithful of Atletico Madrid, who have backed Simeone endlessly in his 4 years at the club. In the end, Simeone may find the lure of Manchester City to be too difficult to resist and with the reports of refusing to sign an extension, Diego Simeone will be at the Etihad come next August.