Julian Alvarez is 'the best player we have!' - Diego Simeone defends decision to substitute angry forward as replacement Alexander Sorloth gets sent off 10 minutes later

Los Rojiblancos are experiencing one of the worst starts in La Liga under Simeone's orders, as they languish in 12th place after the first five league games, bagging just one win and a paltry total of six points. Their latest outing, a 1-1 draw against relegation-battlers Mallorca, has left them nine points behind cross-city rivals Real Madrid. 

Reports from Spain in the past year have already started hinting that Simeone's time at the Metropolitano could soon come to an end and there are even murmurs of club icon and former striker Fernardo Torres being the favourite to succeed Simeone.

Further evidence of El Cholo seemingly losing the dressing room's faith was provided over the weekend, as his decision to bring off Alvarez in the 62nd minute against the Balearic outfit evoked an angry reaction from the 2022 World Cup winner. The situation grew worse when Sorloth, his replacement, was sent off shortly afterwards and Mallorca went on to equalise in the 85th minute.

Speaking to reporters after the game, Simeone said: "He's the best player we have, offensively confident. We need him at his best. He was having a very good game, but I realized we needed Sorloth to create some deeper situations inside the box. He was sent off in a confusing play. We were down a man. And with Julian... all the players get angry when they come off."

Reflecting further on Sorloth's sending off, he added: "There's no point in arguing about whether it was or wasn't. In the end, it was a red card. With one man less, we settled in and the goal came, taking advantage of [Marcos] Llorente's speed. We did what we had to do. We couldn't hold on because of that great goal from [Vedat] Muriqi."

Simeone's side will host 14th-placed Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday, before welcoming Real Madrid in the all-important Madrid derby on Saturday.