João Félix made a spectacular start to the new La Liga season on Monday night, providing a trio of assists as Atletico Madrid started with a 3-0 win at Getafe.
The main beneficiary of Félix’s service was Alvaro Morata, who struck twice to see Atletico 2-0 up before the hour, including a splendid second which came from Félix’s perfect reverse throughball. Felix then received the ball on the half-turn and fed Antione Griezmann, who finished well from outside the box.
Much is expected of the Portuguese this season, with Félix having been voted Atletico’s Player of the Year last term despite his campaign being cut short by injuries. The 22-year-old scored eight goals in the Spanish league, representing his best return since arriving from Benfica in a big-money transfer in 2019.
With many tipping this campaign to be “the year of João Félix,” Atletico boss Diego Simeone was keen to ensure his star forward is allowed to develop in his own time. “He is getting more and more mature, stronger,” said the Argentine. “He showed that in the last 16 [of the Champions League] last season, until he had to stop due to injury.
“He is growing, showing maturity. In the first goal he sees Morata very well, in the second even better. He is growing. He is in the best moment of his career.
“Will this be his year? Nothing should be forced. Things come naturally. He has sacrificed and worked to get to this situation. He has talent, he sees the game more than others and he has a goal. I hope he can continue all this.”
For his part, Félix admits that staying clear of physical problems will be key to him taking the next step. The forward has regularly missed prolonged periods with various issues, including a thigh muscle rupture which ended his season and saw him unable to train for almost three months.
“We will see if I'm lucky this year,” Félix said after his showing against Getafe. “I'm working to be at the best level, not to have injuries, but sometimes football is unfair. I hope that this year nothing happens in terms of injuries and then I will certainly be at a good level because I am working towards it.”
By Sean Gillen
