La Liga still boring, complains Simeone

Posted Tuesday, August 20, 2013 by Foxsports.com

Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone has again branded the Primera Division "boring" due to the overwhelming dominance of big two Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Aside from in 2008 when Villarreal finished runners-up, Barca and Madrid have finished in the top two positions in La Liga for the last nine seasons while the final gap between second and third place in the last four years has been 25, 21, 30 and nine points respectively.

And while Barca and Madrid have splashed out big money again this summer on the likes of Neymar, Isco and Asier Illarramendi - with the possibility of a world-record fee paid by Madrid for Gareth Bale still to come - many of the division's other leading teams have seen star players depart.

Atletico, who finished third, lost prolific striker Radamel Falcao to Monaco, fourth-placed Real Sociedad saw promising midfielder Illarramendi leave for the Bernabeu while Roberto Soldado (Valencia), Alvaro Negredo and Jesus Navas (both Sevilla) have all moved to the Barclays Premier League.

Simeone's side started their campaign with a 3-1 win at Sevilla on Sunday night but he immediately dismissed suggestions they could possible pip Barca and Real to the title. Barca started with a 7-0 triumph over Levante while Real defeated Real Betis 2-1.

"No, absolutely no. Madrid and Barcelona play in a different league. This is a boring championship for the rest of the supporters who can only aspire to be third or fourth," Simeone told reporters, echoing comments he made last year.

"We'll have to wait for a different distribution of television money because now the league is only of two."

Despite that, the Argentinian was nevertheless pleased to get off to a winning start as a brace from Diego Costa and a last-minute Cristian Rodriguez goal helped the Copa del Rey holders overcome Sevilla.

"It's very important to start with a win and moreover in the Sanchez Pizjuan. We had a lot of respect for them because they've changed the team here and have great players," said Simeone.

"They played at a high level throughout the game but we knew what to expect and we found the space to cause them damage."