Atletico Madrid set sights on midfielder in January – young star recommended by Real Madrid legend | OneFootball

After their failed experiment with Belgian youngster Arthur Vermeeren, Atletico Madrid are still on the hunt for a holding midfielder. Despite the presence of Conor Gallagher, Koke Resurreccion, Pablo Barrios and Rodrigo de Paul, Diego Simeone feels he needs more ballast in the middle of the pitch.

According to Relevo, one of several options they are looking at for the position is Croatia midfielder Petar Sucic. The 21-year-old has become a regular for Dinamo Zagreb, and is now featuring for Croatia too, alongside none other than Luka Modric. In fact, it was a former colleague of Technical Secretary Carlos Bucero, Pedja Mijatovic, who recommended Sucic to Los Rojiblancos. The pair worked together for three years as part of the recruitment department for Real Madrid in between 2006 and 2009.

His skillset allows him to operate in a single or a double pivot, and his physique allows him to screen the defence on his own, someting he has started doing for Dinamo. Meanwhile for Zlatko Dalic in the national team, he forms a base with Luka Modric.

Los Colchoneros have been watching him for some time, and feel he would be an affordable addition if they did go for him, despite his contract running to 2028. His leadership, vision, shooting and ability to get into the area are all areas of his game that stand out, despite his deeper position.

Atletico will be deperate to get it right with Sucic, if it is him they go for, as their recent record of younger signings in the transfer market has been mixed. Finding a quality base for the midfield is also one of the most difficult tasks in the game currently, and many big clubs have struggled to work out the position of late.