Simeone inches closer to Atlético

Overnight on Monday, Diego Simeone resigned as coach of Argentinean first division side Racing Club de Avellaneda after leading it to second place in the league in the 2011 Apertura competition. Immediately after "El Cholo" had parted company with the club, talk began of his succeeding under-fire Atlético Madrid coach Gregorio Manzano after a run of defeats against Albacete, Espanyol and Betis had left the support baying for his removal.

On the same day as Simeone's resignation, Atlético president Enrique Cerezo said that the former midfielder, who played for the club between 1994 and 1997 (winning the double in 1996) before returning in 2003 for two more seasons, would one day set foot anew in the Calderón, but as coach.

Another leading candidate to replace Manzano, World Cup-winning coach Luis Felipe Scolari, has said he will remain at Brazilian league side Palmeiras.

"Simeone will end up being the coach of Atlético Madrid," Cerezo said on Argentinean radio show Deportivo Télam. "I understand from you that he resigned from Racing last night [Monday]. I have a great affection for him and we are always in touch."

A fan favorite at Atlético after his pivotal role in the 1995-96 Liga and King's Cup successes - Atlético's last major domestic trophies - Simeone plied his trade in Serie A and Spain before returning to Racing as a player in 2005. A year later, with the side in dire straits, Simeone was asked to swap his boots for the coach's tracksuit. A long career at international level, often all the credentials required in Argentina to take charge of a side, will have been taken into account: between 1988 and 2002 Simeone was capped 106 times, more even than Diego Maradona.

After a rocky start Simeone led Racing to mid-table safety but was jettisoned when the club ownership changed hands at the end of the season.

Racing's loss became others' gain as Simeone led Estudiantes to the 2006 Apertura title, its first in 23 years. On December 7 he promptly resigned, without explanation, and popped up a week later at River Plate, at the same time that Atlético's record signing Radamel Falcao was at the club. He led River, one of Argentina's most popular clubs, to the 2008 Clausura title in his first season, but things started to go awry during that year's Apertura [the Argentinean top division disputes two mini-leagues each season]

It was the harbinger of the club's terminal decline. On November 7, 2008 with River bottom but six games remaining, Simeone resigned. The club finished last for the first time in its history and was relegated to the second tier this year via the averaging system, which demotes the two Primera División teams with the worst results over a three-season period.

Simeone then managed San Lorenzo without note before heading back to Italy to save Catania from what looked to be certain relegation to Serie B. Then, still as impulsive as when he was a player, he returned to Argentina to lead the club he supports, Racing, to success. He fell just short, reaching second place in the league behind Boca Juniors after seven wins, 10 ties and two losses.

Now it appears he is on the verge of crossing the Atlantic again to become reacquainted with Atlético. "I know I'll coach the side sooner or later," Simeone said a few years ago. It seems that moment has arrived.