Stefan Savic: Unravelling the mystery of the missing defender at Atletico Madrid

Stefan Savic has vanished from the scene. The Montenegrin center-back, a stalwart in Diego Simeone's lineup whenever fit, has gone a month without minutes... by tactical choice.

According to Diario AS journalist Sergio Picos, this situation echoes only once in Atletico's history, and that was in Savic's initial five games with the club against Las Palmas, Sevilla, Barcelona, Galatasaray, and Eibar. Back in October and September 2015, Diego Godín and José María Giménez left little room for the newcomer, who needed time to adapt to Simeone's tactics and step up to fill Brazilian defender Miranda's shoes.

Since then, Savic has been a permanent fixture in Simeone's plans. In the last four seasons, he hadn't gone two consecutive games without minutes due to tactical decisions. If Savic was fit, he played - an unwritten rule that lost its validity in the past month. 

During this period, Savic only saw action with the national team, playing against Hungary on November 19 during the break. His last appearance for Atletico was on November 3 against Las Palmas in Gran Canaria, a dismal match where Savic, Axel Witsel, and Mario Hermoso struggled against the mobility of the Canarian attack. Gimenez returned for the final moments of that game, establishing himself as the defensive mainstay from the Celtic match onwards.

Uruguayan, Witsel, and Hermoso have been untouchable. Only during the return from the break, with Gimenez fatigued and facing a transoceanic trip, did Simeone alter his three-man defence, bringing in César Azpilicueta. 

Savic was nowhere in that five-game stretch against Celtic, Villarreal, Mallorca, Feyenoord, and Barcelona - all victories except for the recent draw against Montjuic. During this period, Hermoso and Witsel were ever-present, Gimenez started every game except against Mallorca, where Azpilicueta got the nod, also playing 19 minutes against Celtic and 45 against Barcelona. Even Caglar Soyuncu made late-game appearances against Celtic and Villarreal. Meanwhile, Savic spent all 450 minutes on the bench, a stark contrast to the season's start, where he featured in the starting XI in nine out of ten available games.

Savic and Atletico turned down multiple offers from Saudi Arabia in the summer to secure the services of the central defender. His contract expires in June, and as of now, there's been no acceleration in renewal talks. At 32, he's a veteran player with football left in him. Against Almeria on Sunday in the La Liga clash, Savic might make a comeback.