Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images

Another late kickoff for Atlético. Atlético de Madrid return shorthanded from the international break but are hoping to secure a second home win of the season on Sunday night against struggling Valencia.
Atlético Madrid (2-2-0, 8 points) will be without influential midfielder Pablo Barrios for the rest of the month ? rotten timing, seeing as Atleti on Sunday are kicking off a chaotic stretch of seven games in 22 days, including a derby against Real Madrid in two weeks? time.
Like each Atlético game from now until Oct. 6, the Madrid Derby will kick off at 9 p.m. local time (and Madrid will have an additional 48 hours? rest before the match). This ?scheduling quirk? prompted significant debate on social media this week and even a public comment from LALIGA president Javier Tebas ? who sees no issue with having Atleti play at 9 p.m. or later each week (with the exception of the win over Athletic two weeks ago).
? JUST IN - Javier Tebas: ?Atlético Madrid called me and complained about the timing of the Madrid derby. Over the course of the season, almost everything balances out and everything has its explanation. Surely, the return leg won?t be at that time.? pic.twitter.com/W4GNtIVnyX? Atletico Universe (@atletiuniverse) September 12, 2024

Head coach Diego Simeone would not be drawn into the kickoff time debate when he met the media on Saturday, instead choosing to focus fully on a Valencia team...